Ducati Monster Forum

I can understand now why Elvis shot his T.V.
At least the moto gp hasn't been pushed off of the telly.

nope, no passion for it this time round, I think there are a lot of factors that have effected me. Tibet, lack of freedom of information, environmental destruction, removal or pollution causing factors for the games but not for humanity, history of performance enhancing drugs....

i agree wholeheartedly spider, however, the IOC gave the games to china, which, in my view was a recipe for political bullshit from the get go. china is a communist state and they have always done and will always do what they please, the IOC knew it then and they know it now, you can't tell me they (the IOC) didn't know what china was going to allow and what they were going to censor, and the games being in town brings the spotlight of the world onto them but they don't care. The olympics is the pinnacle of sporting achievement and most "amateur" athletes earn a handsome wage one way or another for their efforts, though money isn't their goal, being the best is and they have been training for their chance since before the location of these games was announced. i guess i'm trying to say that sport is sport and politics shouldn't be a factor, but it's not a perfect world is it? i say bring on the special olympics, they're a real inspiration! [thumbsup]


paul.

oh i thought it was the world championships of swimming, that's all channel seven has been showing did the olympics feature other games wow who would of thunk it!!  :o

Have the started already  ??? [cheeky]

All I can say is thank God I have 10 Seasons of Star Gate to fill in my days.

The Olympics suck ass, I have been watching the animation Domination on Fox 8 on Foxtel, That's the thing I look forward to when the Olympics roll around, you know that Fox 8 will roll out Animations like The simpsons or something like that for the 16 days.

Keeps me entertained!

Come on mate, we're all friends here, open up a little, tell us how you REALLY feel !  ;D

I'm watching the Aussies so I can see my taxes at work via the AIS, looks like I should pay more >:(

The swimming is OK, especially Steph Rice, but that will be over soon and we can see how bad we are in the athletics. The womens hockey was brilliant the other night as well, and the womens water polo was interesting to watch, and the beach volley ball ...........

You're all just a bunch of poo poo'ing grumps, C'MON AUSSIES  [beer]

and the men's gymnastics...especially the rings....those boys are proper built, and it's proper strength too not just show muscles!

Jukie...back me up here...it's a good show, right?

The only way I would be watching the Olympics is if....Nah.....

make the beast with two backs it.

Never have, never will.


Waste of time, effort and most of all, Money.

I haven't been watching the games.

However, I WILL be watching Oscar Pistorius run  [thumbsup]

(http://www.mrnews.it/wp-content/uploads/oscar_pistorius.jpg)

Oh come on what about all the 9 year old chinese girls bouncing around in their undies (can't say I'm a big fan).

I thought he didn't qualify.

I thought he DID qualify - but he didn't  :-[ Nothing to watch now.  [bang]

Well I have to admit that after the horsies and swimmers have done there thing I'll be tuned out. [coffee]
At least it's no big deal missing the first part of the news everynight.....Olympics, or Qantas jets loosing bits!

yeh, Spider i will aways back you up amd the muscles on those guys WOW.

and when I asked if she would like me to be built like that the reply was a very prompt 'NO WAY'












.... that girl of mine is in no hurry to relinquish her position of power

.... and sometimes its good to be timid and submissive

bloody hell!!! are these the olympic games or a swimming tournament??? now seven is showing replays of races with the swimmer watching on!!! there are other sports going on you know seven!!!!!!


paul.

i saw a lot of the 2000 olympics (the opening ceremony thru a morphine haze was rather entertaining) as there's precious little else to do in hospital and rehab and channel 7 were crap at it.  replays of replays of make the beast with two backsing thorpy.  dude can swim yes, but there's other shit happening too.  i just remembered the beach volleyball.  remember when those two aussie chicks one?  you couldn't forget with channel 7.  i think they replayed that more than thorpy.

i can't imagine it being any better this time.

at least the chinese have had to admit that some of the opening ceremony fireworks were pre recorded and some computer generated and that the girl shown singing wasn't the singer as the singer wasn't pretty enough according to someone in charge so she got the heave ho from the show.  they just don't seem get the whole people seeing thru the propaganda facade bit.  and that smog.  are they serious?  imagine living in that shit?

Meanwhile another person goes blind and another person dies in this "lucky country" we call home, all for the sake of some basic medical facilities that don't get funding.
But there is always cash to host a civic reception for our "sporting heroes".
Religion is "the opiate for the masses"?, well Mr.Marx that's been superseded.

That's why the Vic government is so 'event' focused - keep the average punter cheering the football or the fast cars or gambling and they won't have time to ask questions about health and education!

You don't have to make people stupid - you just have to keep them that way.

Since we're not talking about Limp-bits anymore ....

Anybody seen the Drawn Together episode which covers the bling industry in the US?

They are basically saying that the bling industry drives the economy and no educated person would buy bling. Is Tool a Victorian politician?

Yes, lets spend all our money on health and don't do anything interesting, like watch sport, look at art, listen to a concert, watch the ABC. I would rather sit at home and twiddle my thumbs with no culture just as long as some smoker can get new lungs.

I know the argument's not perfect, but you need to spread the taxes around the community. You say we need Health, someone else says we need more money spent on Education, Aunt Flo wants better Rail, Country Bob wants drought assistance...... and a lot of people like to watch sport and cheer on their country  [thumbsup]

I rest my case.  ;)

Dos works in a hospital - so he hates sick people!

sure...but the longest economic boom this country has ever had just finished - we had a real chance to take it to the next level....but it seems we let it slip through our fingers (whilst racking up a hell of a lot of debt buying things!).

Wasn't Vodka supplied cheaply to the Russian masses to stop them rebelling and to keep them quiet?

Sorry Spider, yes I get a little sensitive. Especially when I walk out the front of the Hospital, and patients are standing there attatched to their drips, having a fag.

I spent 3 hours in emergency one night - it was enough, by the end I wanted to kill half the people in the ward! Did a home loan for the doc that stitched me up (I was under a local so I we talked while he stitched). I completely understand why working there it would be difficult.

Nursing, teaching and policing - tough jobs!

Well, an argument could be made for putting more money into education and making it a higher priority than it is. This country is getting dumber & dumber by the day.

And not just education that will just churn out doctors, lawyers, stockbrokers, etc etc. We need more tradesmen, engineers, people that build things. The reason that kids these days do not do the manual labour is because the money is not there and they would rather be a desk jockey. And manual labour is looked upon as low brow, not good enough for my kids.  [bang] [bang] [bang]  Nothing against people on here that are desk jockeys but there is a huge shortage of trades people in this country and it's getting worse.  >:(

And bring back the cane too, while we're at it.  [evil]

<end rant>

Still on the tools Super?

Nah...not enough money in it.  ;)

Although i'm still part of the game.

I Agree super Australia is in deep shit and its getting deeper, one thing I have done is to keep in touch with my first trade as a metal fabricator. As an employer I can see what coming and sees my self getting back on the tools and charging more than a doctor for my old dirty trade in time to come. Current costs for a metal fabricator on the shop floor is $50 plus per hour.

Sometimes I wish that I stuck with the Tech School I went to, but it was the mid '80's and business was king. I have had brief (very brief) thought sabout a mature age apprentiship, but I need to sustain my wage these days.

Which makes me think about the topic. After our sportpersons have retired from thier sport, stick them in an apprentiship to repay society  :P

I tried to get into the "mature" age apprenticeship scheme but it turned out to be more of a publicity stunt than anything concrete. There were so many obstacles and hoops to jump over and negotiate that it was fairly well unworkable!! Let alone the fact that you would have a hard time living on what you would make. [roll]
Made the Government LOOK like it was doing something, but it was a stunt!! >:(

I'd wished my parents had sent me to a Tech school also as I'd have some trade quals to use now. I can do a lot of the metal and automotive trades but with no papers I'm rooted.  ??? And the trade that I did eventually get (Injection molder die setter for plastics) is pretty well dead as the everything has gone off to China as is the norm nowadays. >:(

as a 2nd year mature age apprentice (at 40!) i have to disagree with you. i was fortunate enough to have my long service leave behind me before i started and we have no kids, amen to that!! but i still earned more as a 1st year than i did in my previous job as a postie! i know, it was unskilled labour and shouldn't be hard to better that but i started on $15 an hour and wasn't able to earn any overtime for the first 6 months. mine is with a state govt. corporation and i, as well as all the employees get looked after very well, it's the best decision i've made work wise since giving up my previous trade as a roof tiler. you can wish in one hand and crap in the other, see which one gets full first, both my wife and i grew up poor and neither of us has family to fall back on for anything, the opportunities are there, you just have to make them work for you.


paul.

Sorry to hear about your, experience Dragonworld, We've put on a few "mature age" apprentices, much better to work with, better work ethic and life experience and just generally more reliable.
My Bro just qualified as a LAME (helicopters) (at 50!) through a "mature age apprenticeship", that said, he did have a lot of mechanical experience already that helped him get the job. He did it hard on the crap wages to begin with but is now earning good $$.
I do agree with Paul though, if you want to get somewhere you've gotta start at the bottom and go from there it's up to you,  (a liitle bit of hardship can be character building) that's why I appreciate what I have, it's all come from my own hard graft, no helping hand cash wise from family only that most important thing that a parent can give to their kids, encouragement.
And how about those"sportspeople" who have got a free ride from the public purse, do they pay back to the country what they have earned through their selling of weetbix. I propose a HECS type scheme, but then I suppose there's always the argument that they do pay tax on those earnings.

Don't you love how discussions evolve on this forum, originally intended as a diatribe on the state of whats on the telly, it's become a wee bit more philosophical.

Anyhow, vive la evolution, or as elvis said "viva lost wages".

Brimo, I believe that the podium should be bigger - it should be able to fit the athletes 'support team' on there - parents, partner, coach - the people around that athlete sacrifice so much. All the really successful athletes I know have (had to be) been so self focused that I often feel for their partners!

This thread is a classic on many levels.

The focus and sacrifice these elite athletes make is really no different to many 'career-focussed' people I have seen and I think their supporters/partners suffer even more and it could be over a much longer period. The rewards (or lack thereof) for the support team is interesting though - whether it be the coach, family or taxpayers - the only real beneficiary is the athlete, assuming they can actually reach a level to cash in.

The other week I had a discussion with a recently retired professional footballer who has become a youth coach. He said he was really enjoying his new role, but it was bloody hard work - the thing he missed most was the lifestyle of being a professional sportsman.

Another conversation that comes to mind was with a mate from Uni: At the end of our degree he was working a couple of jobs, ridiculous hours and earning pretty decent money in a bid to set himself up - but the tax sitaution was really getting him down. His view was that the harder he worked the more he was providing for dole bludgers so they could continue to sit on their arse (they were effectively getting a bigger piece of his pie the harder he worked). He thought that since he was 'sponsoring' whole families, he should be recognised for such .... and thought is should be like sponsoring a little kid in Africa - his sponsored family would have to write to him periodically thanking him for his support and updating him on the progress they were making on their journey of self improvement.

Perhaps we need some personal attention from the athletes we are sponsoring.

Jana did her share!

....

I had weeks like that - I'd get a bonus payment and $3k to 5k in tax then walk outside (in Fitzroy) and see the bludgers sitting there....I just wanted a "thanks mate!" from them, that's all....

then I got over myself!

mmmmmm, I'd like a bonus payment like that.  But I know what you mean, it's like that story that was going around about a guy in WA who wanted the dole blugders to have to pass urine / drug tests before they get their hands on his taxes. Fair enough too.


It's just like the conversation at a pub, my round?  [drink]

I'm into the whole Olympics thing this time around.


Womens volleyball, womens beach volleyball, Steph Rice, I'm sure there there was a hot pole vaulter or two int he mix as well...

Some of the close up footage during beach volleyball has been gold. Can anyone say.. cameltoe?

Z...

yes i sure you guys have had fun looking at all the naked bits on the girls

Yeah, he likes the Michael Phelps male camel toe.  [cheeky]

(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3050/2786603290_1888999d0e_o.png)

so Zeee is this what you like, were you wearing you chaps at the time

Clearly you all missed the "female" part of my post. The education in this country really is dropping.. *sigh*

Z...

have they finished yet  ???

yep vince they are all finished

No Vince, it's not finished yet, there's still all the gushing TV interviews, then the tickertape parades for our 'heroes" (as if enough of our taxes has been spent on them already), then the magazine interviews, and of course those cereal ads.