It appears not; they're supposed to get fit first, but a lot of them have apparently never done any proper mountain climbing, although to be fair my source on this is having read a lot of books about Everest climbs and the "Everest industry" after spending 3 weeks trekking in Nepal. Good luck with base camp; I went to…

Shakespeare also pretty much invented the name "Imogen", and in fact I do remember reading that several modern editions argue that it was an accidental misprint for "Innogen".

Actually, a lot of almost-total amateurs climb Everest; there's a mini-industry dedicated to guiding them. Of people who summit, apparently about 5% die, but of course a lot of people have to drop out before they summit.

Yeah, I was all, "Aren't the poorest states already the most religious ones? I do not think this works like you think it does, Ben Stein."

Because her chances of getting the job would have plummeted, which would have defeated the point of the whole thing a little. It would have severely disrupted the interview and the employer might have been pretty annoyed. And she didn't know she was going to be arrested, and I would still argue that she shouldn't have…

Other than giving up on a job interview, what were her options, though? It does seem, from the previous article, like she tried every way she could think of to have the kids watched while she was at the interview. She acted out of utter desperation (AFAIK), rather than malice or even carelessness. Hopefully, this…

In practical terms: I think a lot of the positive attention this woman has received has been because of the mugshot photo that Jez has headlined both articles with. We all like to think that we can "read" faces, and the photo, to those who are inclined to be sympathetic, seems to show someone who's desperate and…

This makes me immensely happy. My professor at uni loved to point out that Rochester went up to Oxford, where he was famously "debauched", at the age of 12. It's simultaneously hilarious and horrifying to imagine drunken 13-year-old Rochester staggering around the city in between making elaborate filthy jokes.

Really? I think it happens all the time. Or more frequently, people simply consciously exempt themselves. It would be a lie if someone else said it, but they have Reasons, so it's not.

Mr. Morgan and his enthusiasm for Shakespeare are the dogs. I have been known to steal and use his "Someday you're gonna get bitchslapped" line.

Oh, you from Queens.

The NHS has its shortcomings, but it makes me glad every day that I am not an American.

Can NOBODY spell "amok" any more?

Loving the Don't Trust the Bitch reference. (That is a DTTB reference, right?)

Me neither. Ursula is the dog's knees. Woman has STYLE. And tentacles.

No worries. Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor, immunologist, epidemiologist, or any kind of public health researcher, and this is not a systematic review. I'm just an interested amateur with some skill in finding & critically considering research. And if you think about it, the risks of a delayed vaccine schedule are…

Heh. I'm pretty sure it generally incorporates certain non-procreative procedures, unless both partners are extremely vanilla. :)

So the barista was actually encouraging the teacher to be GGG? As she's Catholic, I guess she might not be so keen on that either, and, to be fair, I don't generally enjoy it when baristas comment on my sexual preferences.

OK, here are some fairly recent citations on the topic of risks of vaccine delay/refusal and causes for said delay.