It’s A May Day Holiday In Some Places, But There Are No Breaks From The Weekly Fasab Quiz.

“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”

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Holiday or not, no place to hide from the fasab weekly quiz.

Let’s see how you cope with today’s challenge.

As usual, if you get stuck, you can find the answers waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down below, but please NO cheating!

Enjoy and good luck.

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quiz 2

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Q.  1:  What does the ‘K’ in K-mart stand for?

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Q.  2:  Which way does a “no smoking” sign’s slash run?

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Q.  3:  During WWII, what popular food in the U.S. was dubbed “Liberty Steaks” to avoid a German-sounding name?

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Q.  4:  Do books have even # pages on the right or left side?

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Q.  5:  What is the name of Britain’s highest mountain?

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Q.  6:  The Triumph TR 6, Aston Martin DB6, Ferrari Dino and the early 1970s Ford Mustang all had which kind of tail or back?

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Q.  7:  Who was awarded the 1993 Nobel Peace Price along with Nelson Mandela?

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Q.  8:  What is the collective term for a group of tigers?

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Q.  9:  Who is responsible for saying “You’re Fired” in the American and British versions of The Apprentice? (A point for each correct answer.)

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Q. 10:  On which card in a deck is the cardmaker’s trademark?

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Q. 11:  This small, war torn, country’s name translated means white, its Capital is divided by the ‘green line’, Dan Brown’s ‘The Da Vinci Code’ was banned there and it hosted the 2009 Asian Winter Games. What is it?

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Q. 12:  What were the early occupations of the Italian dictator Benito Mussolini? (A point for each correct answer.)

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Q. 13:  The name of which country means ‘go and milk it’?  

            a) Italy          b) India          c) Somalia          d) Brazil

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Q. 14:  What Nobel Prize winning writer was In Dubious Battle with The Grapes Of Wrath, East Of Eden?

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Q. 15:  Which President of the United States of America regularly bought slaves in Washington, D.C. and quietly freed them in Pennsylvania?

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Q. 16:  Towards the end of World War II, the Allied forces dropped the first atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima and a second, an H-bomb, on the city of Nagasaki. If it had been necessary to drop a third nuclear device what was to be the target city?

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Q. 17:  What is the longest chapter in the Bible?

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Q. 18:  In Mel Brooks’ ‘Silent Movie,’ who is the only person who has a speaking role?

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Q. 19:  Who wrote ‘A Clockwork Orange’?

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Q. 20:  Which letter of the alphabet links Boney People?

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ANSWERS

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Q.  1:  What does the ‘K’ in K-mart stand for?

A.  1:  The K stands for founder Sebastian S Kresge.

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Q.  2:  Which way does a “no smoking” sign’s slash run?

A.  2:  Towards the bottom right.

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Q.  3:  During WWII, what popular food in the U.S. was dubbed “Liberty Steaks” to avoid a German-sounding name?

A.  3:  Hamburgers.

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Q.  4:  Do books have even # pages on the right or left side?

A.  4:  Left.

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Q.  5:  What is the name of Britain’s highest mountain?

A.  5:  Ben Nevis.

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Q.  6:  The Triumph TR 6, Aston Martin DB6, Ferrari Dino and the early 1970s Ford Mustang all had which kind of tail or back?

A.  6:  Kamm (Kamm tail, K-tail or Kammback).

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Q.  7:  Who was awarded the 1993 Nobel Peace Price along with Nelson Mandela?

A.  7:  Former South African President Frederik Willem de Klerk.

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Q.  8:  What is the collective term for a group of tigers?

A.  8:  An ‘Ambush’.

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Q.  9:  Who is responsible for saying “You’re Fired” in the American and British versions of The Apprentice? (A point for each correct answer.)

A.  9:  Donald Trump in the US version and Lord Alan Sugar in the British version.

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Q. 10:  On which card in a deck is the cardmaker’s trademark?

A. 10:  On the Ace of spades.

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Q. 11:  This small, war torn, country’s name translated means white, its Capital is divided by the ‘green line’, Dan Brown’s ‘The Da Vinci Code was banned there and it hosted the 2009 Asian Winter Games. What is it?

A. 11:  Lebanon.

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Q. 12:  What were the early occupations of the Italian dictator Benito Mussolini? (A point for each correct answer.)

A. 12:  He had been a teacher and journalist.

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Q. 13:  The name of which country means ‘go and milk it’?  

            a) Italy          b) India          c) Somalia          d) Brazil

A. 13:  c) Somalia.         

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Q. 14:  What Nobel Prize winning writer was In Dubious Battle with The Grapes Of Wrath, East Of Eden?

A. 14:  John Steinbeck.

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Q. 15:  Which President of the United States of America regularly bought slaves in Washington, D.C. and quietly freed them in Pennsylvania?

A. 15:  James Buchanan.

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Q. 16:  Towards the end of World War II, the Allied forces dropped the first atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima and a second, an H-bomb, on the city of Nagasaki. If it had been necessary to drop a third nuclear device what was to be the target city?

A. 16:  Third city to be targeted was Tokyo.

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Q. 17:  What is the longest chapter in the Bible?

A. 17:  The longest chapter in the Bible is Psalm 119.

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Q. 18:  In Mel Brooks’ ‘Silent Movie,’ who is the only person who has a speaking role?

A. 18:  Typical of Mel Brooks’ humor, the only person with a speaking role in ‘Silent Movie’  is the famous mime Marcel Marceau.

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Q. 19:  Who wrote ‘A Clockwork Orange’?

A. 19:  Anthony Burgess.

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Q. 20:  Which letter of the alphabet links Boney People?

A. 20:  The letter is ‘M’ as in ‘Boney M’ and ‘M People’.

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“So What Do you Think Of These?”, He Asked Quizzically!

“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”

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Quiz day again folks.

Another random set of questions, some quite easy, others rather difficult and a couple of tricky ones thrown in for good measure.

But there’s no pass mark and no pressure so why not give them a go?

And, as usual, if you get stuck you can find the answers waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down below, but please, NO cheating!

Enjoy and good luck.

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Quiz 07

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Q.  1:  The name of which capital city is also contained in the title of a movie starring Frank Sinatra?

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Q.  2:  What was the surname (last name) and the nicknames of the father and son who controlled Haiti from 1957 to 1986? (A point for each correct answer, so three points up for grabs.)

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Q.  3:  On which mountain did Noah’s Ark come to rest as the Great Flood subsided?

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Q.  4:  Who was the biggest selling female singer in America in the 1990s?

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Q.  5:  There are many examples of countries in the world that are land-locked, that is surrounded by several other countries, but there are three countries that are completely surrounded by one other country only, a point for each that you can name and a bonus point if you can name all three.

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Q.  6:  Why was Louise Brown famous in 1978?

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Q.  7:  What is the longest river in Australia?

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Q.  8:  In which well known movie would you find the robot or android known as ‘Ash’?

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Q.  9:  In which country did the soup known as ‘Waterzooi’ originate?

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Q. 10:  Two South American countries have no coastline, name them. (A point for each.)

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Q. 11:  Who or what was ‘The African Queen’ in the movie of the same name?

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Q. 12:  What does the yummy breakfast treat ‘Eggs Benedict’ consist of?

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Q. 13:  Which Canadian newspaper magnate held important Government Offices in England during World War I and World War II?

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Q. 14:  Who played ‘Herman Munster’ in the long running CBS Sitcom?

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Q. 15:  Which former American President left behind an immortal souvenir – the teddy -which was named after him?

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Q. 16:  Orson Welles stated of him that his movie ‘The General’ was “the greatest comedy ever made, the greatest Civil War film ever made, and perhaps the greatest film ever made.” Of whom was he speaking?

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Q. 17:  According to Greek mythology whose box contained all the evils of the world?

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Q. 18:  He was born in Poland and emigrated to Palestine in 1906. He became the first Prime Minister of the State of Israel. Who was he?

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Q. 19:  Who wrote 2001 ‘A Space Odyssey’?

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Q. 20:  What is the name of the largest river in Saudi Arabia?

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ANSWERS

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Q.  1:  The name of which capital city is also contained in the title of a movie starring Frank Sinatra?

A.  1:  Rome, Italy and the movie ‘Tony Rome’.

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Q.  2:  What was the surname (last name) and the nicknames of the father and son who controlled Haiti from 1957 to 1986? (A point for each correct answer, so three points up for grabs.)

A.  2:  Dr Francois Duvalier known as ‘Papa Doc’ (1957-1971) and his son Jean-Claude known as ‘Bébé Doc’ (1971-1986).

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Q.  3:  On which mountain did Noah’s Ark come to rest as the Great Flood subsided?

A.  3:  Mt. Ararat.

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Q.  4:  Who was the biggest selling female singer in America in the 1990s?

A.  4:  Mariah Carey.

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Q.  5:  There are many examples of countries in the world that are land-locked, that is surrounded by several other countries, but there are three countries that are completely surrounded by one other country only, a point for each that you can name and a bonus point if you can name all three.

A.  5:  Vatican City, and San Marino, both surrounded by Italy and  Lesotho surrounded by South Africa.

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Q.  6:  Why was Louise Brown famous in 1978?

A.  6:  She was the world’s first test-tube baby.

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Q.  7:  What is the longest river in Australia?

A.  7:  The Murray River

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Q.  8:  In which well known movie would you find the robot or android known as ‘Ash’?

A.  8:  ‘Ash’ was the robot/android in the movie ‘Alien’.

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Q.  9:  In which country did the soup known as ‘Waterzooi’ originate?

A.  9:  Belgium.

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Q. 10:  Two South American countries have no coastline, name them. (A point for each.)

A. 10:  Bolivia and Paraguay.

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Q. 11:  Who or what was ‘The African Queen’ in the movie of the same name?

A. 11:  ‘The African Queen’ was a boat.

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Q. 12:  What does the yummy breakfast treat ‘Eggs Benedict’ consist of?

A. 12:  ‘Eggs Benedict’ consists of two halves of an English muffin, topped with ham or bacon, poached eggs, and Hollandaise sauce.

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Q. 13:  Which Canadian newspaper magnate held important Government Offices in England during World War I and World War II?

A. 13:  Lord Beaverbrook.

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Q. 14:  Who played ‘Herman Munster’ in the long running CBS Sitcom?

A. 14:  Fred Gwynne.

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Q. 15:  Which former American President left behind an immortal souvenir – the teddy -which was named after him?

A. 15:  Theodore Roosevelt

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Q. 16:  Orson Welles stated of him that his movie ‘The General’ was “the greatest comedy ever made, the greatest Civil War film ever made, and perhaps the greatest film ever made.” Of whom was he speaking?

A. 16:  Joseph Frank “Buster” Keaton.

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Q. 17:  According to Greek mythology whose box contained all the evils of the world?

A. 17:  Pandora’s.

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Q. 18:  He was born in Poland and emigrated to Palestine in 1906. He became the first Prime Minister of the State of Israel. Who was he?

A. 18:  David Ben Gurion.

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Q. 19:  Who wrote 2001 ‘A Space Odyssey’?

A. 19:  Arthur C Clarke.

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Q. 20:  What is the name of the largest river in Saudi Arabia?

A. 20:  A bit of a tricky one to end with, there are no rivers in Saudi Arabia. Score a point if you said zero or none.

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Made it Ma! Top Of The World! – Not Nowadays, Pal, Not Without A Permit!

“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”

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The first part of the heading of this blog post is the famous last line from the 1949 gangster movie “White Heat”, starring the late James Cagney. If you are a film buff you may have heard of it.

And if you have read much of this blog you will know already that the bureaucrats who try to curtail our freedom and the morons they employ to help them are everywhere.

What you maybe didn’t realize is that everywhere means EVERYWHERE.

And everywhere includes Mount Everest! If climbing it is on your bucket list, then get a pen and put a line through it unless you have a pile of cash and are prepared to jump through a lot  bureaucratic hoops.

First off you will need all your paperwork in order. You will have to tackle the Nepal Ministry and Administration and various people wanting their slice of the pie.

You’ll need

  • a local Trekking Agency to file for a permit 6 months prior to the expedition;
  • a copy of your passport;
  • passport pictures;
  • a letter of recommendation from your local Alpine Association/Climbing club.

And that’s even before your get there.

Once in Kathmandu, you will

  • file additional papers;
  • have a half-hour briefing with the minister or his associates about climbing sensibly and to care for the environment:
  • then another much longer briefing;
  • more papers to fill out;
  • an environment security of around $4,000 returned when the expedition has brought back the trash and empty oxygen bottles;
  • pay a Liaison Officer who will spend some time in your camp;
  • and finally, a film permit if you are doing a commercial film, shooting private video is free.

Then you will need to stump up a hefty fee for a permit which will set you back a minimum of $25,000 to over $70,000 depending on various factors. And that’s not including other substantial costs such as your climbing gear and tour guides.

Remarkably, despite the bureaucracy, the heavy fees, and the physical risks involved in the venture, there is a long, long queue of morons  –  sorry make that mountaineers  –  eager to make the climb.

And woe betide you if you try to circumvent the bureaucrats.

A young Chinese climber tried that a few weeks ago. He had made it 25,500 feet up the mountain’s North Col route to within a few thousand feet of reaching the summit when he was spotted camping alone, away from other expeditions.

The people who spotted him were a contingent from the Tibet Mountaineering Guide School. These would-be bureaucracy enforcers challenged him and, when he could not produce a permit, physically assaulted him and removed him from the trail.

Someone who witnessed the spectacle wrote in an email:

“I did see the permitless chap being ushered down the hill.  The Tibetan rope fixers were sent up to get him. I saw them bringing him down the ropes from the North Col to [advanced base camp]. It was disgraceful. They literally kicked him down the ropes. It was a disgusting example of a pack of bullies egging each other on and literally beating him down the hill. It was absolutely unnecessary as he was offering no resistance and was scared out of his mind.  The Tibetans should, and could, have just escorted him down the hill and let the authorities deal with him.”

So be warned, not just about Everest, which I don’t think many of us want to tackle, but about the dangers of allowing the bureaucrats and their enforcers to run roughshod over ordinary citizens.

There are other hazards with trying to climb Everest too, as the rather eccentric British actor Brian Blessed found out when he was part of an expedition to climb the mountain some years ago.

I’ll leave the final word with him.

Enjoy.

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***PLEASE NOTE*** It has been brought to my attention that this video is blocked for US viewers. If anyone would like to see it just send a comment and I will email it to you. It is approx 6MB in size so should be okay for most email addresses.