In the absence of any definition, my basic questions still obtain: What if the "person" paying for the service is a couple, and one of the people goes out of town and thus is no longer technically in the "household"? Should that person get to use it? Or do they have to wait until they once again cross the threshold of…

So, they get to define what "household" means? I am unmarried, and have no children, and I live alone. My friends are, nonetheless, my household. My sister who lives in a different city is part of my household. I upgraded my Netflix account precisely so I could share it with my household, as defined by ME.

There is a debate on whether circumcision is medically beneficial. While not "necessary," repeated studies have shown that male circumcision lowers the rate of AIDS infection by as much as 65%. Other studies have shown the viability of a device that makes adult circumcision less painful, so one can still argue the…

I read it as an adult. It struck me as almost Wharton-esque in its portrayal of characters who could be greatly aided if they just had, you know, a conversation. I liked it a lot, and while I found the Hitchcock/Olivier film version rather tiresome, I enjoyed the 1997 TV version with Charles Dance and Diana Rigg.

I lauled several times, but especially at "hootenanny." However, I would argue that "beguiled" should be replaced with "ensorcelled."

This is Blaize. Hi!

When I was a teaching assistant, Zoe Archer was one of the best students I ever had. She's smart as a whip, and funny as hell, and I would be glad to recommend anything she writes, up to and including her shopping list.

@drunkexpatwriter: It's the ACTUAL CAFE featured in the movie Amelie!!1!! OMG squee! That movie changed my life! I must go to that cafe when I'm in one of the most interesting cities in the world because that won't be lame or boring AT ALL!!!! <—-I didn't know about it either until someone I know went there and posted…

@drunkexpatwriter: You forgot the fucking Amelie cafe. I guess you COULD drink wine there, but you know what I mean.

@foolish-rain: I would say that until given further information it would be best to to assume nothing. Even if she does have an untreated mental illness, that actually neither explains nor excuses her behavior, nor is there any indication that any form of treatment would stop her from being a terrible parent or a bad…

@foolish-rain: Thank you. Most people would have gotten all shirty about it, so your apology is gratefully accepted.

@foolish-rain: No, I'm mentally ill and wouldn't do this to a kid. Unless you are her shrink, the only thing you can really say about her is that she is a bad person. Being a bad person is not in-and-of-itself a sign of mental illness; rather, it is an indication that a person is an evil douche.

@Donovanesque: Although, really, exacting as payment a solemn promise to never again attempt to foist off on an unsuspecting public some of the horrible things they sell as "fashion" would be worth a bushel of diamonds, and would make you the hero of all right-thinking people of the Free World.

@Thena: It's not about the economic aspects of it; it's about the ridiculousness of having a monarchy. Because anarchy in this case is not being used in the non-specific sense of "chaos" but in the specific sense of "fighting against the tyranny of centralized government." I, personally, find that fact that the U.K.,…

I knew someone who had a flickr photo ripped off by Anthropologie. The commenters on flickr thought she should settle for, say, a gift certificate to Anthropologie, but I argued that a. Anthropologie's wares are so marked up compared to whatever they pay their foreign slaves to make them that a gift certificate would…

The real problem seems to be that a. kids can't get sound advice closer to home, and b. kids believe the shit they hear on television.

@FearlessReader:

@FearlessReader: Recommended by my South African friend, this is not about apartheid, but earlier history: J.B. Peires, The Dead Will Arise: Nongqawuse and the Great Xhosa Cattle-Killing Movement of 1856-7. Also, Antjie Krog's Country of My Skull. My other recommendations are all fiction, so let me know if you're…

@thethirdchimpanzee: Sorry to comment right after you. Yours must have gone up just as I was posting mine. Your explanation is, of course, more complete.

@Hotscot: My father was an astronomy teacher for years, so I learned some tricks of the trade.