Reader Tips

Reader Tips 64 Comments

Good evening ladies and gentlemen, welcome to SDA Late Nite Radio. Tonight, for your delectation and pursuant to our Wednesday night comedy show, here are the one-minute openings to three classic Supermarionation television shows, Fireball XL5 (1962), Stingray (1963, my favourite), and Thunderbirds (1964). Pick Continue Reading for more on today’s show.

Today’s
Σ ΔVe/n		   = +0.16
EKOS:
4.27 » 5.31 		Nanos:
6.93 » 6.20 		Strategic:
9.45

(I’m not counting the Strategic Counsel’s new poll of Ve = 9.45 in today’s Σ ΔVe/n because their last poll was on 2008-08-31, so this new result of theirs, good news though it is, can’t reasonably be considered part of the trend monitoring yet.)

Your Reader Tips are, as always, welcome in the comments.

   

Interestingly, perhaps, I once had offices in that rotating skyscraper in Fireball XL5, and in that office block that goes underground in Stingray. I tell ya, that twenty-story rotating skyscraper was much more difficult to design and construct than simply going underground (you should’a seen the bearing plates we had to fabricate in the former case; relatively speaking, the hydraulics involved in the latter case were trivial). Unfortunately, I can’t say whether or not the current offices of SDA LNR studios are shown in Thunderbirds, that’s classified, but I can say that I’m Engineer Brains 😉

Here’s something you may not know about Supermarionation, from the Wikipedia link above: “The system used marionettes suspended and controlled by thin wires. The fine metal filaments doubled as both suspension-control wires for puppet movement, and as electrical cables that took the control signals to the electronic components concealed in the marionettes’ heads. The heads contained solenoid motors that created the synchronized mouth movements for dialogue and other functions. The voice synchronization was achieved by using a specially designed audio filter which was actuated by the signal from the pre-recorded tapes of the voice actors; this filter would convert the signal into a series of pulses which then traveled down the wire to the solenoids controlling the puppet’s lips, creating lip movements that were precisely synchronized with the dialogue.” Cool, eh what?

If you would like to explore Supermarionation further, here’s a YouTube query that will get you there, and here’s the full Stingray episode Treasure Down Below, Part 2, and Part 3.

64 Replies to “Reader Tips”

  3. From the “Listen when Hollywood stars tell you how to vote” file (and via Tim Blair):
    Russell Crowe suggests it would be cheaper to give each American one million dollars
    The New Zealand-born actor announced, during a US TV talkshow appearance, a plan to cure America’s financial crisis … Crowe believes the US Government should give each American $US1 million.
    His reasoning was that the US has a population of about 300 million, and a $US300 million outlay was a fraction of the $US700 billion financial bailout package rejected by politicians in Washington DC yesterday.
    He should have thought a little harder though—a $US1 million handout to 300 million people would cost $300 trillion.
    http://blogs.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/timblair/index.php/dailytelegraph/comments/crowe_knows/

  5. Possibly OT:
    Gerry Anderson stuff. Some of the older farts here might also remember ‘UFO’ from the ’70s. I’m biased since I’ve met the site owner and love the series, but the best reference place for this old TV show is ufoseries.com/faq.html.
    UFO begat Space:1999, which was the Anderson’s second non-puppet offering and was less entertaining.
    Uh-oh. Now you all know that I’m a fan of cheesy science fiction and thus a terminal nerd.

  7. Ya so what’s the problem Crowe is right it will be cheaper by the time this thing is done.

  8. Ah yes Fireball XL5. Loved that show as a kid. always wondered why the ship’s tail fin looked like the one on my uncle’s ’58 Dodge and why those little scooters resembled my mother’s Mix Master.

  10. Watched (briefly) CTV national news coverage of the debate. Their go-to expert was Jean LaPierre – former bloc and former liberal mp (neither of which was noted on the screen). Astonishingly he thought that Dion did great, that duceppe did okay and that Harper very poorly. Can we pull their license or something – this level of bias is beyond the pale.

  11. Vitruvius,
    You could just infill the missing Strategic numbers to extend the range. You know, just make sh!t up. I hear that kind of statistical trick is valid in tree ring climate reconstructions.
    Thanks for the forecast, its looking pretty good. Let’s see what the polls show after tonites french debate.

  13. Today, while I was in Vancouver moving my stuff out of my apartment (can’t stand the moonbats anymore) I got a phone call from Lorne Mayancourt’s riding office asking me how I was going to be voting in the federal election. I replied that I’ll vote for whatever party gets rid of bill C-68. There was silence on the line for a while and then the female caller asked me “What’s bill C-68”. I explained to her that it was the firearms act and that I’d be voting for any party that would leave my guns alone. Her response was “I guess you’ll be voting liberal then”. With local space-cadets like these in the conservative party office it’s no wonder that Hedy “the crosses are burning as we speak” Fry gets elected over and over again in Vancouver Center. The only qualification that Mayancourt has, to the best of my knowledge, is that he’s homosexual. This may get one elected in downtown Vancouver, but the guy was also a member of the provincial lieberal party which has strong ties to the federal lieberals. I’m really beginning to wonder about the conservative party as they’re starting to really stray from their core values.
    At least things are so much simpler in the interior of BC where I’m no longer the only redneck in the crowd.

  14. Here’s a loopy concept for you all: a “national breast-feeding strategy”.
    I saw some doctor call for one a few months ago, and now an NDP member of the Ontario legislature is looking for a provincial one. No doubt it will be “high quality” like the proposed child care program and like public education and the post office always was … oh wait a minute …
    The loony things the big-government types come up with these days … everybody’s a moron, except them. How did the human race ever survive this long without breast-feeding strategies?

  15. To-day I was reading a lot about the bailout package,the pork, the egos and other depressing stuff. I listened to Ray Charles sing ‘America the Beautiful’. It just didn’t matter what any of the donkeys said after that.

  16. When I was a pup, I was convinced the world would be as depicted in The Thunderbirds, or even the ominous Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, and I couldn’t wait. I’ve still got a Corgi Thunderbird 2. Any day now. F.A.B., Vitruvius, F.A.B.

  17. London Olympic Park toilets will not face Mecca “out of sensitivity”
    September 25, 2008
    London’s Olympic Park toilets to turn away from Mecca out of respect for Islamic law By Daily Mail Reporter
    Last updated at 2:24 PM on 24th September 2008
    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1061051/Londons-Olympic-Park-toilets-turn-away-Mecca-respect-Islamic-law.html
    Toilet facilities are being built at London’s Olympic Park so Muslims will not have to face Mecca while sitting on the loo. The Olympic Delivery Authority has said it wants to produce an ideal venue for people of all cultures, faiths, ages and abilities for the 2012 Games and beyond.
    The Islamic religion prohibits Muslims from facing the Kiblah – the direction of prayer – when they visit the lavatory.
    An ODA spokeswoman confirmed that a ‘percentage of general toilets would not face Mecca’ out of sensitivity. She could not say how many toilets would turn away from the East. Also as part of the design, special washing facilities will be linked to Islamic prayer rooms. It is not the first time toilets have changed direction to accommodate Muslims. Last year, thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money was used to ensure toilets at Brixton prison in London did not offend Islamic law. Muslim prisoners complained of having to sit sideways on toilets so as to not break code. Faith leaders in the government pressured officials to approve turning the toilets 90 degrees.
    But ODA chairman John Armitt said it was about making the London Olympic venue the ‘most accessible and inclusive public park’ for future generations. Other design measures earmarked for the park include: Gentle slopes into the venue with wider pathways with smooth surfaces and seating and resting places at regular intervals for wheelchair users; Accessible toilet facilities including special areas where older disabled people can be helped to change by their carers; and Baby changing areas and buggy stores at toilet facilities.
    Vice chairman of London Olympic Organising Committee’s Sports Advisory Group and Paralympic champion Dame Tanni Grey-Thomson said: ‘London 2012 is aiming to go further than any previous host city to ensure that both the Olympic and Paralympic Games are accessible for everyone. ‘After the Games, world-class sporting venues and the largest and most inclusive park in London will be left to help inspire a new generation of Olympic and Paralympic athletes.’ London Mayor Boris Johnson welcomed the commitment to inclusive design saying ‘it is clear that accessibility must continue to be at the core of our work’ in developing facilities in the Park. ‘I welcome the ODA’s commitment to inclusive design and while I’m determined to provide taxpayer value from the 2012 budget, that commitment will not be compromised and remains a top priority for me as we prepare London to host the 2012 Games.’ The final strategy was based on input from a range of communities, multi-faith groups, disabled people and Paralympians.
    London 2012: Olympic toilets will not face Mecca
    http://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/3635

  19. Thanks for the memories Vit! Dug out my original Thunder Bird XL-5 hardcover. It’s still cheesy,but like a good cheese,still great! Love how you could see the strings on the puppets.And we thought it was advanced TV.Mind you,beats a lot of the drivel on now-a-days!

  21. Not sure what you’re talking about, Vit @ 2:46, but can I be a visual inspector for the event?

  22. The definitive web site for polticial polling and the most unbiased and accurate has proven to be LISPOP from Wilfred Laurier University.
    http://www.wlu.ca/lispop/
    They look at all the polls to come up with their projections.
    This will give you the updated seat count projection. You can take this one to the bank.

  23. “Red-faced Liberal officials were looking to pull the ad yesterday after Macintyre blew the whistle, but by press time hadn’t returned phone calls.”
    “Longtime NDPers John and Jean Macintyre of North Vancouver are miffed they were featured kissing in a new Liberal TV ad.”
    …-
    “Grits face new AdScam
    NDP couple fear someone will think they’re Liberals”
    http://tinyurl.com/3hzqbe (province)
    “It’s a warm, fuzzy Liberal campaign ad with smiling people.
    John and Jean Macintyre grin at the camera, and give each other a warm kiss.
    There’s just one problem — the Macintyres are lifelong New Democrats.”
    More here:
    http://tinyurl.com/3r6kyw

  24. The Fatwa Ladies of Islam are singing, aka Islamic mysogyny.
    …-
    “Flirting with Palin earns Pakistani president a fatwa
    Lahore, Pakistan – After the flirtation came the fatwa.
    With some overly friendly comments to Gov. Sarah Palin at the United Nations, Asif Ali Zardari has succeeded in uniting one of Pakistan’s hard-line mosques and its feminists after a few weeks in office.
    A radical Muslim prayer leader said the president shamed the nation for “indecent gestures, filthy remarks, and repeated praise of a non-Muslim lady wearing a short skirt.”
    Feminists charged that once again a male Pakistani leader has embarrassed the country with sexist remarks. And across the board, the Pakistani press has shown disapproval.
    What did President Zardari do to draw such scorn? It might have been the “gorgeous” compliment he gave Ms. Palin when the two met at the UN last week during her meet-and-greet with foreign leaders ahead of Thursday’s vice presidential debate with opponent Sen. Joe Biden, the Democratic vice presidential nominee.
    But the comments from Zardari didn’t end there. He went on to tell Palin: “Now I know why the whole of America is crazy about you.”
    “You are so nice,” replied the Republican vice presidential hopeful, smiling. “Thank you.”
    But what may have really caused Pakistan’s radical religious leaders to stew was his comment that he might “hug” Palin if his handler insisted.”
    http://tinyurl.com/4mq62t (yahoo)

  25. “national breast-feeding strategy” is not so unusual considering that the dippers think everyone should be feeding off the government teat. Too bad they have never given a thought about what happens when the teat dries up.
    As far as classic tv goes, my fav was Sea Hunt with Lloyd Bridges. It was easy to tell the good guys from the bad: good guys had double tanks, the bad guys only one.

  26. *”From The West Australian newspaper
    Climate change could haunt humanity forever: Garnaut”
    …-
    “Dion the Clear Winner: Ipsos Reid Poll
    An Ipsos Reid poll for Canwest News Service and Global National late Wednesday night found Liberal Leader Stephane Dion emerged as the clear winner of the French debate” (nnw)
    …-
    *http://tinyurl.com/4ybujo (watssup)

  28. Read that too maz2, was wondering who they actually polled, as I’m an IPSO panel member and survey participant and they didn’t poll me last night.
    In fact it was about a month ago that they polled me on anything political and that one was very specific on who you’d vote for and who you voted for last time.
    Anyways, the francophone here said that Harper won hands down.
    Screw the media and their biased backers, they’ve been screwing us for so long…
    The headlines make me laugh, what a bunch of buffoons. Dion the clear winner?? BAHAWAAAA!

  30. “German finance minister Peer Steinbrück denounces US greed last week”
    Greed:
    *”O.E. grædig “voracious,” also “covetous,” from P.Gmc. *grædagaz (cf. O.S. gradag, O.N. graðr “greed, hunger”), from base *græduz (cf. Goth. gredus “hunger,” O.E. grædum “eagerly”), cognate with Skt. grdh “to be greedy.” […] A Ger. word for it is habsüchtig, from haben “to have” + sucht “sickness, disease,” with sense tending toward “passion for.”
    Who was the finest exponent of Greed/habsüchtig, in the 20th Century? Yes, it was Adolf of German National Socialism, whose Greed/Habsüchtig was spelled l-e-b-e-n-s-r-a-u-m, aka living space, expansion, aka What’s Yours is Ours, aka Deutschland Uber Alles.
    …-
    “Financial Crisis: So much for tirades against American greed
    Ambrose Evans-Pritchard says it is ironic that European banks have turned out to be deeper in debt than their US counterparts.
    It took a weekend to shatter the complacency of German finance minister Peer Steinbrück. Last Thursday he told us that the financial crisis was an “American problem”, the fruit of Anglo-Saxon greed and inept regulation that would cost the United States its “superpower status”. Pleas from US Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson for a joint US-European rescue plan to halt the downward spiral were rebuffed as unnecessary.
    By Monday, Mr Steinbrück was having to orchestrate Germany’s biggest bank bail-out, putting together a €35 billion loan package to save Hypo Real Estate. By then Europe was “staring into the abyss,” he admitted. Belgium faced worse. It had to nationalise Fortis (with Dutch help), a 300-year-old bastion of Flemish finance, followed a day later by a bail-out for Dexia (with French help).
    Within hours they were all trumped by Dublin. The Irish government issued a blanket guarantee of the deposits and debts of its six largest lenders in the most radical bank bail-out since the Scandinavian rescues in the early 1990s. Then France upped the ante with a €300 billion pan-European lifeboat for the banks. The drama has exposed Europe’s dark secret for all to see. EU banks took on even more debt leverage than their US counterparts, despite the tirades against ”le capitalisme sauvage” of the Anglo-Saxons.
    We now know that it was French finance minister Christine Lagarde who begged Mr Paulson to save the US insurer AIG last week. AIG had written $300 billion in credit protection for European banks, admitting that it was for “regulatory capital relief rather than risk mitigation”. In other words, it was underpinning a disguised extension of credit leverage. Its collapse would have set off a lending crunch across Europe as banking capital sank below water level.
    It turns out that European regulators have allowed even greater use of “off-books” chicanery than the Americans. Mr Paulson may have saved Europe.
    Most eyes are still on Washington, but the core danger is shifting across the Atlantic. Germany and Italy have been contracting since the spring, with France close behind. They are sliding into a deeper downturn than the US.”
    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/ambroseevans_pritchard/3118994/Financial-Crisis-So-much-for-tirades-against-American-greed.html
    *(onlineetydict)

  32. idd – yes, I agree with you. I think that the polls are not random but are ‘quota selected’. That is, after one poll, they know the political affiliations of their respondents. The next time, they select only those people who, eg, affirmed that they would vote Liberal or..
    So, the polls are definitely biased because the sample population is selected rather than random.

  33. What, Vitruvius? No Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons?
    It’s a good thing that children have low standards in entertainment. Even as a child, I couldn’t understand why they didn’t neutralise the traitorous Captain Black.
    But then Captain Scarlet compared favourably to the live action Rat Patrol with the villainous Dietrich, another childhood fave. I watched an episode a few years ago — it was unbelievably stupid. Hard to believe even a young boy would watch such rot.

  34. Maz:
    That unbiased column in the Grope and Fail is by Michael Valpy.
    As dishonest and unfair as most of the media in Canada is, Valpy ranks right up there.
    And that is saying something, seeing as Mugabe appears less biased than your typical Cdn. “journalist”.
    Journalist in quotations because I’m not sure if there are any in Canada. I can’t think of one. Lots of columnists. No journalists.

  35. From the cbc this am..Andrew Nichol interviews a Mom from Edson,Alta on the murder,and the fear in their town..”I hear that some people are buying up locks,and motion detectors out there”..he sounds so depressed and worried,..”is that the kind of thing that goes on normally out there?”
    What an absolute tool!I have noticed as well,that pretty much every report the cbc does on this story,they have to bring up the,”people are worried about vigilante justice”…yeah,cuz that’s how dirty old redneck Alberta is!

  36. I’m surprised no one is commenting on Dion’s “Hail Mary”.
    Making policy on the fly. If you don’t like this one, I can get another.
    This guy is a disaster. I hope Cdns. don’t allow our co-opted media to help the Liberals steal another election. Although I do understand the Liberals could rightly be considered underdogs this time, due to their lack of access to the public purse.
    The award for biggest Liberal sycophant goes to Roberty Fife of CTV. He has been on all morning talking about how Dion won, how Dion is a great debater. The fool doesn’t seem to realize Dion will be making a liar of him tonite.
    The media meme becomes clear. Dion fights back from great odds.
    Watch as your election is stolen from you.

  37. (Via Contentions) Andrew C. McCarthy, Obama’s Assault on the First Amendment
    In London last week, a frightful warning was sounded about encroaching tyranny. At an important conference, speaker after impassioned speaker warned of the peril to Western values posed by freedom-devouring sharia — the Islamic legal code. Like all tyrannies, sharia’s first target is speech: Suppress all examination of Muslim radicalism by threats of prosecution and libel actions, and smugly call it “the rule of law.”
    But we may already be further gone than the London conferees feared. And without resort to the Islamicization that so startled them. For that, we can thank the campaign of Barack Obama…

  39. Kate,
    Following on Mississauga Matt’s posting, check out the condescending tone, pressure, and the slant on this video. Full article link, too. Any guess as to whether or not there’s a particular party they want the masses to support with their vote???
    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1066481/Hollywood-A-listers-join-forces-star-studded-American-election-video.html
    To go straight to the video link
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vtHwWReGU0

  40. Arthur Herman, Putin and the Polite Pundits
    How do we explain this long-running inclination (to put it no more strongly) on the part of knowledgeable observers to avert their eyes from the challenge posed by Putin and his regime?
    Part of the answer, certainly, lies in Putin’s skill at talking the democratic talk while walking the authoritarian walk. As an exercise in deceptive rhetoric, his two terms as Russian president were stunningly successful in conveying the impression that at some point he would deem it possible, for the future good of Russia, to relax his iron grip…

  41. (Via SWJ) Ann Scott Tyson, Commander in Afghanistan Wants More Troops
    The new top U.S. commander in Afghanistan said yesterday that more American troops are urgently required to combat a worsening insurgency, but he stated emphatically that no Iraq-style “surge” of forces will end the conflict there…
    Speaking in Washington yesterday, McKiernan described Afghanistan as “a far more complex environment than I ever found in Iraq.” The country’s mountainous terrain, rural population, poverty, illiteracy, 400 major tribal networks and history of civil war all make for unique challenges, he said…
    Tribal engagement in Afghanistan is also vital, McKiernan said, but it must be carried out through the Afghan government and not by the U.S. military.
    “I don’t want the military to be engaging the tribes,” he said. Given Afghanistan’s complicated system of rival tribes and ethnic groups and the recent history of civil war, allying with the wrong tribe risks rekindling internecine conflict, he said. “It wouldn’t take much to go back to a civil war.”

  43. I will give a large, expensive cigar to whoever can tell me which major left-wing party has added this item to their official election platform:
    “A regulatory framework will impose mandatory emissions reduction targets on Canadian industry and reduce Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions by an absolute 20 per cent by 2020.”
    Wait – scratch that cigar. Too much CO2. Instead I’ll give you a make-work job dismantling Canadians’ cars and industrial machinery and shipping the scrap metal offshore for reprocessing. As a bonus you can use the leftover bits of plastic and carpet to build your children a shack to live in.

  44. Watch as your election is stolen from you. Posted by: bud at October 2, 2008 10:16 AM
    It is simply a move to get Quebec onside with the Libranos. The ROC don’t matter. If Frenchy LeBeouf denies the Cons their 10 extra seats (as they are/were polling), then the majority evaporates into a tight minority.
    All the spin all the time is on Quebec. Because structurally, economically, and politically, every major policy decision in this nation is driven by them or Ontario.
    People who believe in ‘Canada’ are wistful, teary eyed dreamers – who think that it is more than a collection of regions being bought off by the same old politics of divide, conquer, and write the cheques. Speaking of which….

  45. “Although Citizenship and Immigration lists the $578,590 for Wai Young & Associates under its “grants and contributions” section, Ms. Johnson said the contract was awarded by Citizenship and Immigration’s Ontario regional office after Ms. Young responded to a request-for-proposal, a process used in government tendering.”
    An RFP. Nice. For an acclaimed candidate hedging their bets. Beautiful.
    The Cons are getting the money out the door fast and furious for the ass lickers.
    http://tinyurl.com/5xx3qn

  47. CHECK OUT TODAY’s WESTERN PRODUCER!! Is it coincidence that all the letter to the editor–12 days before the election-are all “Pro Left.” My seat usually comes in at over 65% Cons. 13 out of 14 seats in Sask. are Cons. Why is it that no Conservatives write letters to the editor?? I sell a rat!

  49. Stephen Schwartz, Bad Books Behind Bars
    Early this year, the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) announced the completion of an inventory of Islamic books and videos in Muslim chapel libraries in the 105 federal correctional institutions. The bureau had undertaken the inventory at the recommendation of the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General, which in turn was responding to the concerns of terrorism experts and members of Congress who sought to end or forestall the radicalization of Muslim inmates. I obtained a copy under the Freedom of Information Act.
    The inventory, which runs to 399 pages, shows a marked predominance of Wahhabi and other fundamentalist Sunni literature among the Muslim holdings of federal prison chapels. The collections also contain plentiful materials from the Nation of Islam, the extreme black nationalist movement headed by Louis Farrakhan, but Shia and Sufi works are generally absent, as are texts on broader aspects of Islamic history and culture…

  50. If Fife thinks Dion won, gotta wonder what he was imbibing on when watching it. I watched it and sure can’t say Dion won. I’d say the main loser though was Crazy Lizzy.
    Harper did all anyone could expect with two hands tied behind his back in this non-debate format. Noticed too how the camera was focused on Harper’s back more often than not while the Opposition got their mugs on camera. No winner could be chosen in that bogus debate.
    We can’t be surprised the Media hacks give Dion the prize. He’ll win in their opinion tonight as well. That’s their game, diss Harper at every turn. It will only get worse, especially from that mouse faced Rae, with a smile like a ripple on a slop pail, he’s desperate.

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