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Statistics |
| Unique Visitors: 44 |
| Total Unique Visitors: 239789 |
| Visitors Out: 773 |
| Total Visitors Out: 773 |
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| Human rights in Burma |
| 2008-05-14 17:54:43 |
"As hold-ups continue in the supply of foreign aid to Myanmar, Asian leaders have been urged to pressure the country's military rulers into taking swift action to address a growing humanitarian catastrophe. Amnesty International believes that by deliberately blocking life-sustaining aid, the government of Myanmar may be violating the right of the population to life, food and health."(in http://www.amnesty.org/)Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Labour Day at the "Familistère" |
| 2008-05-04 17:22:53 |
Thanks to TF1, I've spent the last holiday at the Godin "Familistère" (Guise, near St Quentin, Aisne). The "Familistère" or "Social Palace" project was started in 1859 by Jean-Baptiste André Godin, a disciple of Charles Fourier's utopian socialism. Godin, a wealthy industrialist, founder of the famous stove factory that bears his name, transferred his foundries to Guise in 1846 and decided to follow his heart and his dreams of a better society, offering his workers a decent place to live and to raise a family."work facilities […] were linked to a communal settlement to form an harmonious society, equipped with all the necessary amenities: residential buildings, a pool, cooperative stores, a garden, a nursery, schools and a theatre (the temple of the Familistère community). This exper...
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| Tempelhof referendum |
| 2008-04-28 16:47:19 |
After this weekend’s failed referendum, forced by Berliners wishing to keep it open, Tempelhof, the Berlin Airlift airport, used during the Cold War to support the Western part of the City, landlocked by the Soviets, will be closed in October. It’s reasonable: it’s too close to the City centre, surrounded by residential areas, and the runways are too short for modern jets. The terminal, one of the biggest buildings in Europe, built from 1936 to 1941 by Ernst Sagebiel (according to Albert Speer’s plan for rebuilding Berlin, or "Germania", the new world’s capital), should be preserved.Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Full employment in France |
| 2008-04-24 17:44:07 |
Mr Sarkozy said it loud and clear tonight, on TF1: "Plein emploi". Full employment. Looking for something to illustrate this post, I've found this excellent video, and I've also found out that Mr Fillon had already used those two magic words.Let's recapitulate: we have a president that was elected because of its liberal program. He was going to put France to work. He and his prime minister. Work more to earn more, they say. At the same time, he also tried to convince us that he was the one who could talk Mr Mittal (above all people...) to keep Gandrange open, and this is not very liberal-like, it sounds more like populism. Cheap populism, which is what you get when you try to marry 400 years of Colbertism with freshly ...
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| Biofuel: filling your tank with hunger |
| 2008-04-23 17:06:44 |
The UN is calling for action to avoid the "silent tsunami of rising food prices which threatens to push more than 100 million people worldwide into hunger" (http://www.un.org/). Protests against rising costs of basic foods already started in Haiti, Mexico, the Philippines, Bangladesh, South Africa.... Sub-Saharan Africans continue their decades-old silent protest, dying slowly, quietly, dryly.I recall now the bad feeling I had last year when I read about Bush's visit to ethanol-driven Brazil. Biofuel production is said to be responsible for at least one third of the recent increase in food prices. It was already being called “deforestation fuel”. Now it’s also “hunger fuel”.But it’s bio. «Quand je dors chez mon copain, on mange tout le temps ...
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| Berlusconi and Mara Carfagna |
| 2008-04-18 09:48:20 |
It looks like the media can now give Mr. Sarkozy a rest. The new Italian prime-minister will surely keep them busy for some time. First move: Mara Carfagna (on the photo), a former model, television presenter and Miss Italy contestant, is thought to be in line to become Minister for the Family.We already knew that pre-andropausic men tend to burn their last shoots with younger women , but be ware of post-andropausic men that already learned how to get their kicks out of the exercise of personal power. Especially when they can convince people to vote for them.Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Big political issue |
| 2008-04-16 14:38:43 |
The Vel'ohs are becoming the biggest political issue in Luxembourg City, which demonstrates vehemently the opposition's improficiency. First, someone asked a professional biker to test the bikes and to let us know that they're too heavy and that the brakes are not very good (who cares? they're built to be ridden at a relaxed pace, to cruise along bike paths and enjoy the ride). Now the CSV in questioning the security of payments made with credit cards at the Vel'oh stations.Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| OLEFA: The next generation school portal: Made in Luxembourg |
| 2008-04-15 17:01:18 |
"OLEFA is a collaborative web platform for schools offering a suite of cool web applications: school website management, library management & online books , collaborative writing tools (wiki), online comics & storytelling and much more... The school-communities of 27 townships and over 50 schools in Luxembourg currently use OLEFA, 8.948 students and teachers are using the system by now. There are 25.209 collaborative wiki pages. 116.104 books are registered in 81 libraries."From olefaschool.org. More details also at kirps.com.Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Clearflow: Microsoft and traffic jams |
| 2008-04-14 16:54:50 |
Microsoft is launching a new web-based software tool to help drivers avoid traffic jams in 72 cities in the United States. It will be freely available at Live.com.I wonder if it will also show people how to drive back from Vista to XP.Sorry guys, I'm not going in that direction.Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Where I Lay My Head (and my bones...) Is Home: Some statistical facts about dual citizenship in Luxembourg |
| 2008-04-14 14:00:37 |
(see the original charts in http://www.statistiques.public.lu/)The red line at the bottom of the chart represents the number of foreigners that actually died in Luxembourg from 2001 to 2006 (arithmetic mean: 613 per year). Compare it with the blue line at the the top(arithmetic mean: 3133). Luxembourgers/foreigners death percentages: 83,6 / 16,4 %. Luxembourgers/foreigners total population percentages: 61,2 / 38,8 % (arithmetic means per year, again). Now think that some (most? half?) of this foreigners didn't choose to die in Luxembourg (road or work accident, sudden death, whatever...).Surprised? I'm not.And I'm also not too keen on the traditional idea of patriotism. In fact, I think most of it is a bunch of nonsense, and "national" traditions just a model for those who are too lazy or ...
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| Peeping Tom in Luxembourg |
| 2008-04-13 18:05:35 |
A man has been arrested this weekend, for using a mini camera hidden in his shoe to look up skirts, at Auchan. WTF?!Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Flemish Apartheid |
| 2008-04-11 16:36:34 |
If the recurrent language restrictions in Flanders were being imposed in a non-european country, protesters would already be camping in front of that country's embassies. Where is Europe going? (again?)(see also easyexpat.blogexpat.com)Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Vel'oh! hoax |
| 2008-04-05 05:03:56 |
Someone at RTL Radio Luxembourg thougth that the Vel'ohs were just asking for an April Fools' Day hoax ... and shot himself in the foot!The hoax was about swapping an old bicycle for a Vel-oh!'s annual subscription. The City decided to fight back, and play the game:"La Ville de Luxembourg s'était inspirée de l'action «poisson d'avril» organisée par RTL Radio Lëtzebuerg le 1er avril pour proposer aux intéressés de déposer leurs vieux vélos le 2 avril entre 15h et 16h devant l'Hôtel de Ville, place Guillaume II. En contrepartie la ville a pu offrir 35 abonnements d'un an à vel'oh!La ville projette d'utiliser tous ou une partie des vieux vélos dans le cadre de l'action «Mei oder manner», ayant pour but d'engager les enfants des écoles primaires ...
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| The old "Veräinshaus" in Differdange |
| 2008-04-03 12:17:51 |
I don't understand this country. Is it so difficult to see some cultural and patrimonial value in this XIX century (the entrance gate is older) building in Differdange? The fabrique d'Église(laymen association in catholic parishes) wants to sell it (one million euros). The Secretary of State for Culture wants to preserve it. According to L'Essentiel, this is another political dispute between central and local governments over the possession of land.Either way, couldn't they preserve the old building and use it for community purposes? Just the idea of preserving it would serve per se a very strong community purpose - it would help keeping the city's collective memory and it would strengthen the sense of identity of its habitants.I'm sure they could find another place to build this ... thin...
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| Tim Buckley / Song To The Siren |
| 2008-04-02 11:37:56 |
YouTube rules..."Long afloat on shipless oceansI did all my best to smile'til your singing eyes and fingersDrew me loving to your isleAnd you sangSail to meSail to meLet me enfold youHere I amHere I amWaiting to hold youDid I dream you dreamed about me?Were you hare when I was fox?Now my foolish boat is leaningBroken lovelorn on your rocks,For you sing, touch me not, touch me not, come back tomorrow:O my heart, o my heart shies from the sorrowI am puzzled as the oysterI am troubled as the tide:Should I stand amid your breakers?Should I lie with death my bride?Hear me sing, swim to me, swim to me, let me enfold you:Here I am, here I am, waiting to hold you"Herbert James Draper - Ulysses and the Sirens (1909)'Come here,' they sang, 'renowned Ulysses, honour to the Achaean name, and listen t...
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| Tom Waits in Europe |
| 2008-04-01 18:13:34 |
According to The Washington Independent, Tom Waits is going on tour this summer, not only across US but also in Europe, I hope...(I've recently found this rare 1979 clip for "The one that got away" directed by John Lamb - the whole story here)(Updated: read my post about the European Tour Petition) Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Tom Waits - European Tour Petition |
| 2008-04-01 17:15:08 |
"To: ANTI Records I have been a Tom Waits fan for many years now, yet have never been lucky enough to see him in a live setting; I wasnt born at the time he performed in Scotland and couldnt get tickets to see him at his last appearance in the UK in London in 2003. It is with this petition that I hope to appeal for a European tour - however small - to iron-out the inequities wrought by Time and to see one of the most original and electrifying musicians of our era.C. MacIntyre Sincerely, The Tom Waits - European Tour Petition to ANTI Records was created by and written by Chris MacIntyre (chris_mac159@hotmail.com). This petition is hosted here at www.PetitionOnline.com as a public se...
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| "Nicolas Sarkozy arrives in the UK but we all love Carla Bruni" (The Telegraph) |
| 2008-03-27 17:56:07 |
"Miss Bruni looked as demure as a convent girl, and as ready to be naughty if the spirit, or the Prince of Wales, moved her.She wore a long grey coat and a slim grey beret, and managed to make almost everyone else appear overdressed." (The Telegraph) "it's all about Carla - and that funny little husband of hers" (The Telegraph).Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Tata buys Jaguar and Land Rover |
| 2008-03-27 07:10:16 |
Is it the colored man's burden to save the ruined English auto industry (see bellow)?('Swami Vivekananda (Sanskrit: स्वामी विवेकानन्द, Svāmi Vivekānanda) (January 12, 1863 – July 4, 1902), whose pre-monastic name was Narendranath Dutta (Narendranath Dut-tta), was one of the most famous and influential spiritual leaders of the philosophies of Vedanta and Yoga. He was the chief disciple of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and the founder of Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission. He is a major figure in the history of the Hindu reform movements.'- in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swami_Vivekananda.'Vivekananda's main agenda was Hinduization or Vedantization of the Christian West, a sort of muted counter conversion of the people whose missionaries had been evangeli...
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| Vel'oh: Vade retro, satana! |
| 2008-03-26 17:52:40 |
The Wort has just discovered that Luxembourg and the Vel'oh bicycle system will become a lucrative business for JCDecaux, as confirmed by Jean-Sebastien Decaux, the executive director of the company.I'm outraged. I feel betrayed. We all thought that JC Decaux was a non-profit organization, but no, it's a market economy firm.I want to scream: "____________" (here you can choose: "¡No Pasarán!" or "Vade retro, satana!") Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Bigfoot in Luxembourg |
| 2008-03-25 15:17:09 |
Nice buzz for the movie (check the director's name). But who needed the video confession, at least this side of the Atlantic?Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Luxembourg drivers: are they truly polite? |
| 2008-03-22 11:20:10 |
From the Wort: "Luxemburger sind höfliche Autofahrer". I agree that it's not easy to find an agressive driver in Luxembourg. But "polite", "courteous"? "Höflich" can also be translated has "unrude", which is more appropriate in this case. A tree is unrude. A stone wall is unrude. Luxembourgish drivers (or Luxembourg drivers) are not rude, they drive peacefully and respect traffic rules (when they're aware of them...). But this is not being polite: being polite is to adequate your speed near a junction to let someone turn left in front of you, even if you have the right of way. Being polite is to aknowledge the existence of other drivers and don't wait half a minute before moving so that you don't limit the number of ca...
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| Leonard Cohen in Europe |
| 2008-03-19 07:02:44 |
(Because Of, from the "Dear Heather" album, PV by his daughter, Lorca)"Leonard Cohen announced his world tour, marking a return to the live arena after 15 years. He is scheduled to open in Toronto on June 6 and 7, the city that gave birth to his career as a recording and literary artist, and then play Europe in the remainder of June, July, August and early September." (in http://www.leonardcohen.com/)In Europe:14-Jun-08 Dublin IMMA15-Jun-08 Dublin IMMA17-Jun-08 Manchester Opera House18-Jun-08 Manchester Opera House19-Jun-08 Manchester Opera House20-Jun-08 Manchester Opera House29-Jun-08 Glastonbury Glastonbury Festival01-Jul-08 Oslo Aliset Stadium03-Jul-08 Helsingborg Open Air05-Jul-08 Copenhagen Rosenborg Castle06-Jul-08 ...
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| Diesel taxes in Europe |
| 2008-03-17 11:12:13 |
"The European Commission says the wide variation in rates of diesel (officially known as gas oil) taxes creates distortions in the road haulage market – and also increases environmental damage by encouraging “fuel tourism” by hauliers (i.e. making special journeys or using longer routes in order to fill up in a country with low taxes). Also, since diesel and petrol have similar impacts, especially from the point of view of CO2 emissions, there is no environmental reason for the two minimum rates to differ. The Commission is therefore proposing to raise the minimum rate on diesel up to the minimum rate on petrol.""Adopting by 447 votes in favour to 64 against with 39 abstentions a rep...
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| Think City, please (or else be Smart, or show your iQ) |
| 2008-03-14 17:07:20 |
"TH!NK city demands very little of you. In fact, not much more than a mobile phone. Just an overnight power top-up, and it’s ready to go in the morning. It can travel up to 200 kilometres (124 miles) in city driving on a fully charged battery, with a top speed of 100km/h. It is fun, clean and simple." The Th!nk City will go on sale at the end of 2008. It will run for 200 km on one charge and hit 100 km/h. The price will be around 20 000 euros, plus a 200 euros monthly fee for the battery loan scheme (the company will own the batteries, replace them when needed, and even pay you electricity and insurance bills). It's not cheap. In a 5 years (60 months) scenario, it would cost 20 000 + (60 x 200) = 32 000 euros. Now let's say that we would drive 500 km per...
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| The Flemish "Wooncode" |
| 2008-03-13 12:52:46 |
The United Nations are afraid that the Flemish "Wooncode" may lead to racial discrimination: speaking or agreeing to learn Flemish has become a condition to access social housing in Flanders. I think it's the other way around, that it really promotes integration, but that's not the problem. The problem is that language is being used as a weapon against French-speaking Belgians, keeping them on their side of the fence in the area around Brussels. And this is the worst way you can use your mother-tongue. It becomes a vehicle of hate. Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Mehdi Kazemi and Pegah Emambakhsh |
| 2008-03-12 14:47:44 |
Mehdi Kazemi, a gay Iranian asylum seeker who the British government plans to send back to Iran on the grounds that if gay Iranians are "discreet about their sexuality", they will not get in trouble, tried to apply for asylum in The Netherlands. But his case cannot be judge there, and he is about to be send back to the UK, where another Iranian, a lesbian woman named Pegah Emambakhsh, was also detained and her asylum demand refused. If returned to Iran, they both face imprisonment and possibly stoning to death.They're both human, not just names on the news. Their deportation his going to be discussed in the European Parliament this week.Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| City of Luxembourg: Plan d'aménagement général (PAG) |
| 2008-03-12 13:05:37 |
Some personal (and humble) considerations about the PAG presented the 29th of February (you can find it here):- it's very positive to finally acknowledge that the saturation of the Hamilius-Gare axis is one of the major problems concerning public transportation in the city; the solution is, of course, to create other bus-train(-tram?) interfaces, namely in Kircheberg, Gasperich and Howald (East, South and West; the Northern entrance to the city poses a different problem, as the highway is still under construction);- it's good to know that, in a country where one of the most relevant yearly "cultural" activities is the Auto-Festival, someone is planning to reduce accessibilities for cars and promote public and soft transportation (at least it shows some nerve...
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| Metro subway in Luxembourg |
| 2008-03-10 17:18:15 |
The ADR (Alternative Democratic Reform Party*) thinks that the best solution for the future of public transportation in Luxembourg would be a metro, not the tramway. The building of a subway tunnel in only three years in Leipzig is cited has an example. Leipzig has 500 000 habitants, five times more than Luxembourg (surrounding comunes included). The city tunnel was built to complete the suburban train system, and it's not a metropolitan subway. A similar project in Luxembourg would mean extending the train lines from the Gare up to Kirchberg, with an additional central station in the Centre-Ville. By the way, Leipzig's suburban tunnel is a seven years project, with the following anounced benefits: "More than 320,000 car km...
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| The new bus lane in route d'Esch |
| 2008-03-10 17:18:15 |
Some facts about the new most discussed bus lane in route d'Esch:1. When you have two lanes of traffic and you decide that one of them is going to be used only by buses (and by bicycles, it seems), you can not expect that all the drivers that were previously using that lane will leave their car at home and jump into the next bus. You can expect bigger traffic jams in the only lane now open for private cars.2. We have a diesel pollution problem (in Luxembourg, high levels of nitrogen dioxide, in Brussels, fine particles: that's the geography of money - new diesel cars with particle filters here, old diesel cars without particle filters in Belgium - both very polluting and bad for your lungs, although "environmental-friendly" and government-supported because ...
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| More problems with the bicycle contract in Luxembourg City |
| 2008-03-10 17:18:15 |
The free bicycle system - and the contract with JC Decaux - is still fuelling the political debate in Luxembourg City. Some of the MUPIs (Mobilier Urban pour l'information) were removed, and it seems that others will follow, because their location was said to be dangerous for traffic visibility. A written approval from the Ministry of Culture is also missing, according to the opposition. "This fairy tale comes from people who have no clue about public tenders", says the City Council.The result of all this is obvious: the City will have to loose a lot of money to honor the contract with JC Decaux, and the opposition will have a very good argument for the coming election, although they don...
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| Vel'oh! |
| 2008-03-10 17:18:15 |
New site here: http://www.veloh.lu/.Véloh!Envoyé par weblessentiel dans Evènements sur wat.tv Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| MUPI in Luxembourg (like in "Martine in Luxembourg" or "Noddy in Luxembourg") |
| 2008-03-10 17:18:15 |
We already knew that Santa was living in Luxembourg. After the most recent anti-MUPI fairy tale reactions (small print: "although our main business is banking, we don't want your filthy capitalist advertising in our city"), I've just been informed that Snow White is also moving into town, and she's bringing the Dwarfs with her (not all of them, Grumpy is staying in Liechtenstein; and, by the way, Bambi is still happily living in Switzerland, where he relocated to after the fall of the Weimar Republic).(previous posts about the free bicycle system and the contract with JC Decaux here and here)Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| Tata's Nano at Geneva Motor Show |
| 2008-03-10 17:18:15 |
Let's be very politically incorrect: millions of Indians will get one very cute family car, and the world will get more pollution, more CO2 emissions, more demand for fossil fuels. And don't forget that when the catalytic converter fails and it's not replaced, emissions will increase fivefold.Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| We're saved: the Vatican has listed pollution has a new sin |
| 2008-03-10 17:16:41 |
... and also genetic experimentation, drug abuse, abortion, paedophilia, excessive wealth and causing social injustice. Part of this we already knew (the "do as I say, not as I do" part). But... Recycle or go to Hell!?The Green Pope (further explanation here)Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| From Liechtenstein to Luxembourg |
| 2008-03-05 08:47:11 |
After the recent tax evasion scandal concerning Liechtenstein, German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck said that other loopholes should be addressed. Luxembourg, Belgium and Austria included."Asked whether Luxembourg was considered a tax-friendly state, Steinbrueck replied: "Not in the sense of a tax haven, but you know that it is hard to get certain information from Luxembourg. That also applies to Austria."In the second half of 2005 when the new rules came into force, Liechtenstein collected 2.55 million euros ($3.87 million) of tax on investments that come under the scope of the EU rules.This rose to 14.8 million euros for all of 2006, compared with Switzerland's collection of 101.62 million euros in first half 2005 and 341.24 million euros in 2006." (http://www.guardian.co.uk/feedarti...
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| Zidane and Materazzi - News get old |
| 2008-03-05 08:46:35 |
"Las noticias envejecen. Consíguelas frescas."(News get old. Get them fresh.)For Milenio mexican news agency, by Olabuenaga Chemistri, México City.Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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| 9/11 ASH ad |
| 2008-03-02 16:04:16 |
Anti-smoking ad for ASH (Action on Smoking and Health) by DDB New Zealand. Too soon?Blogging in Luxembourg. In engrish....
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