Half a percent

Some time ago a newspaper article - probably in the Manchester Guardian - mentioned Stewart Lee's book "How I escaped my certain fate", which I've just finished. Rather fine it is, too. Partly it's about his life and the progress of his career during the nineties, until it faltered rather at the end of the decade, then his involvement with Jerry Springer - The Opera in the early years of this century and how his his career recovered and developed afterwards. This is interesting enough in itself for what he has to say about comedy, and I should really go back through it and note all the comics he recommends for future reference, but it also includes three sections which are transcripts of his stand-up sets with extensive footnotes commenting on, expanding on, and on occasions apologising for, what he was saying. The material still had me holding my sides (which could be viewed as a drawback, he points out - shouldn't stand-up be trying to do things that don't work equally well written down?) but the commentary adds a lot. It's worth the price of admission on its own, I'd say.

In other book-related news, I've lent Charlotte my copy of Quite Ugly One Morning. I could tell by the delighted laughter the point when she encountered The Jobby.

Saw this nice post from solipsistnation last night. Laughed. Particularly recommended for roleplayers, airsofters, and anyone else childishly militaristic.

Also . . . Illuminati, anyone?

Later: Oh, also . . .

Thanks to seventorches for passing this on to me.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of
America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God,
indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

. . . is an anagram of . . .

I, George W. Bush, an evil Republican fascist, used God to
inflict pain on the world, end life, facilitate death, create militant
jihad rebels, and to let youths die for nothing.

Some people have too much time on their hands.

Steve Bell's good today.

There's also a profile of Shane McGowan:

His girlfriend, Victoria Mary Clarke, was once called to his house to find blood gushing from his mouth after he had tried to eat volume three of The Beach Boys' greatest hits.

"[Shane] had become convinced that the third world war was taking place and that he, as the leader of the Irish republic, was holding a summit meeting in his kitchen between the heads of state of the world superpowers, Russia, China, America and Ireland," she wrote in the Guardian. "In order to demonstrate the cultural inferiority of the United States, he was eating a Beach Boys album."

Let's see Motley Cruet top that. Please.