A Resounding "Non"

Well, as was to be expected, France voted against the european constitution. Around 55 percent of the voters put their mark in the "non" box, and sowith have scuppered the chances of the consitution going ahead, as all 25 states have to pass it.
The UK has been debating whether to call off their public debate if the french said no, as there is no way for it to go ahead now. On wednesday the population of the Netherlands are also going to the polls and are expected to vote against it as well.
Watching the news here in Germany has shown politicians saying that they believe that letting the people vote is wrong, as they aren't capable of making such a decision. Furthermore, they think it's a pity if it's only France (and maybe the Netherlands) that are nullifying the contitution, when 9 other states have voted for it.
Let's have a look at those comments shall we. States which have decided that the people that voted them into parliament are incapable of voting properly, and that those countries who make their decisions democratically are ruining Europe, when they themselves refuse to let their own population decide.

Next up a bit of football. After the shock win by Liverpool against Milan, and the water sprinklers automatically turning themselves on on the pitch of the german final Bayern Munich vs Schalke 04, there is more in store for those of Mainz 05. There is a chance that they'll be playing in the EUFA cup next season.

Now for those of you who aren't satisfied with the size of your regular burgers, try the ones that Paris Hilton has been advertising...follow the links and see why people are claiming that the advert (video only works in internet explorer) is a bit too graphic for a children's restaurant (and check out the size of that burger!).

After 198 convicts in the state of New York (including men that have molested children as young as 2) have been found to have received viagra free of charge from the state, changes are afoot to not allow them to be given it free any more. Nice to know that those who have done wrong get all the necessaries in life...

Three sisters in the UK have all given birth to a child soon after another. Nothing special about that, but these sisters are of ages 12, 14 and 16. I say no more.

According to the Royal National Institute for the Blind, over 200 thousand people in the UK have gone blind needlessly because they did not go to get their eyes checked frequently enough. Make your appointment now.

And now that Lobelto has gone on to Glasgow from his brief visit from Hamburg to our humble Mainz we're stuck here with the 38 degrees without a breeze in sight, and even less chance of getting any working air conditioning in this city...

Stay Cool

Germany 4 points

Yes, another Eurovision song contest has passed by, but this time with a bit of a shock. The original 'european' countries were there at the bottom of the table, whilst Greece took the show with it's number one place.

Birthday wishes this week go to Elena (C) who celebrated on the 18th.

Australian mothers can feel safer today, as a sniffer dog has been found to no longer find drugs but talcum powder, so no worries about your kid going missing now...

Onto corporate makeovers. Well, this time a university logo change. Yes, the University of Birmingham has decided to make it's logo look like some food packaging. Of course the students have started up a petition...

Ever thought of the consequences of gossiping? Well, the mayor of a small colombian town has, and so has made it illegal to spread unfounded rumours. It might sound stupid, but it does make sense if you think of all the people who get affected by things that were purely made up (just take a look at how many people died after Business Week printed an article claiming that US soldiers had flushed a copy of the koran down the toilet).

Now for those of you looking for a bit of excitement whilst doing your daily chores, beware. After a lady got so aroused whilst out shopping, she lost consciousness and the paramedics were called, where they found her underwear still vibrating...

Stay sound

Mapping with google, and free dutch research

For those of you looking for a bit of fun on the web (no, not that type Jordi!) get on down to google maps and try searching for your local brothel, corrupt politician or whatever takes your fancy. The accuracy of the results is astounding :)

Ever wanted to read through a load of research papers from the Netherlands. Well, now you can, after scientists from all the major research institutions got together and released the info on the web for free. Another step toward Total Information Freedom...

Well, not much else happening around here at the moment. Lobelto is back from Hamburg but went straight off to Spain (can't blame him). And with the weather doing what it does best here, there's no point even going out any more. I think I'll just resign to the fact that there will be no summer in Mainz this year...

What a month !

No sooner had Gema left to go back to Valencia, than the following week I arrived on those sacred shores. A week of sun, sand and friends that was definitely worth waiting for.

Big news like the new german pope and Blair being elected as prime minister for a third time (can't believe it) won't have gone amiss, but a few other titbits will now be mentioned.

The Pope's old car has just been auctioned off on ebay for a sum of 250 thousand dollars. For a '99 VW Golf, that's a pretty good sell :)

For those of you fed up with cheap flights, and wanting something different, try cheap cruises. Going along the french and italian coasts at knock-down prices has never been better with Easycruise (from the same man who brought you Easyjet).

In Texas, cheerleaders better be careful what they sing and wear and how they dance after a new law has been passed to ban "sexually suggestive" cheerleading in schools. "Give me an R, give me an 18"...

On the eve of the elections in the UK, a bomb blast occurs outside it's embassy in New York. Nobody was hurt, but questions are being raised as to who it was...

Everybody knows that google has some great tools out there. In fact, their intentions to digitise all library books has brought with it a lot of controversy in France where they like to keep their information free from america's grasp. Well, proof of Bush's plans for europe have now been revealed on google maps. try maps.google.co.uk and zoom out as far as you can, and you'll see the UK, US and...nothing else.

Ever wondered what the latest secret weapon would be? Well, in Germany people are starting to wonder if terrorists are researching with wildlife, after finding a disease that causes toads to grow to over 3 times their normal size and then explode. So think again before you next crush a snail - it might have a nasty surprise for you.

Well, after the great wedding of Pili in Valencia (and the dancing that went on until 5am) as well as the birthday party of Olga last saturday (birthday on thursday) and the combined leaving party for Bill and flatwarming party of Magda and Manu on thursday, let's hope we get some rest in order to prepare for the coming week...(you can always try this game to help relax)

Work hard...