User talk:OtherDave

gd-0Bha Gàidhlig aig seaneairean agus seanmhairean agam.

Hi, there. This is my talk page. As they say down home,

Chan fhiach cuirm gun a còmhradh. *

* A feast's no good without talk.

Unfortunately, I can't talk right now. Click here to start a new section at the bottom. I used to try to keep discussions in one place (your talk page, or mine), but I also used to go to the gym more.

(Retitled welcome-to-Wikipedia note)

Hello, OtherDave, and welcome to Wikipedia! Hope you like it here, and stick around.

Here are some tips to help you get started:

• To sign your posts (on talk pages, for example) use the '~' symbol. To insert just your name, type ~~~ (3 tildes), or, to insert your name and timestamp, use ~~~~ (4 tildes).
• Try the Tutorial, and feel free to experiment in the test area.
• If you want to post an image but don't know how - check out the Wikipedia:Image tutorial
• If you need help, post a question at the Help Desk or on my user talk page
• You might want to check some open tasks on Wikipedia:Community portal
• Explore, be bold, and, most importantly, have fun!

Good luck! Renata3 18:42, 9 August 2005 (UTC)

Congresses

Looks good to me, that will be good stub information for now. The members list is available, we just have to arrange it from other sources. I'm guessing the modern format is better to replace the format on the older congresses. --Golbez 23:09, August 16, 2005 (UTC)

---

re: WikiProject U.S. Congress
Thanks for the hello, User:OtherDave. Great work you're doing, and it's fantastic to have other people slogging through Congressional articles. Check my note here about capitals. --Markles 17:14, 13 September 2005 (UTC)

anns a' Ghàidhlig

Tha mi gu math, tapadh leat!

Is toigh leam an "template" agad :-) Mendor 06:57, August 18, 2005 (UTC)

Fair use

Thanks for leaving a note on my user page! It's helpful :) Might you be interested in dealing with copyrights on Wiki? We have a huge problem with images... And there is so much to do about it. See, User:Fastfission ceated this WikiProject about fair use (see Wikipedia:WikiProject_Fair_use). You could start from there!

As for my question about fair use, it dealt with a Lithuanian source. It's super cool maps with a university copyright. So I wondered if it would be possible to use those maps under fair use. And it looks like not... But we will see :) Renata3 02:31, 25 August 2005 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Science collaboration of the week

You voted for Human genome to be improved while it was listed on WP:IDRIVE. This article is now nominated on Wikipedia:Science collaboration of the week. Please consider supporting it with your vote. --Fenice 13:19, 3 January 2006 (UTC)

Image copyright problem with Image:Gd0.jpg

Thanks for uploading Image:Gd0.jpg. However, the image may soon be deleted unless we can determine the copyright holder and copyright status. The Wikimedia Foundation is very careful about the images included in Wikipedia because of copyright law (see Wikipedia's Copyright policy).

The copyright holder is usually the creator, the creator's employer, or the last person who was transferred ownership rights. Copyright information on images is signified using copyright templates. The three basic license types on Wikipedia are open content, public domain, and fair use. Find the appropriate template in Wikipedia:Image copyright tags and place it on the image page like this: {{TemplateName}}.

Please signify the copyright information on any other images you have uploaded or will upload. Remember that images without this important information can be deleted by an administrator. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. Thank you. Shyam ^(T/C) 08:15, 13 March 2006 (UTC)

Otherdave, I am really sorry for being deletion of the image file. Userboxen are the derivative work of a template. But if you upload it as an image file, then it should have its copyright information. Its really not understood to me, what is the need to upload such kind of files. It can be generated as a template work. I may be wrong, if you think this kind of work really should be there. Thanks, Shyam ^(T/C) 15:57, 30 March 2006 (UTC)

Waulking

You're right, I didn't know that! It's interesting - I wonder how the change occurred? Time for me to go and read up on the clearances again! I'll add that to Waulking song. Thanks for sharing! Oh, and it is my eternal shame that I don't speak Gaelic, so I have to wonder what you said! Ruaraidh-dobson 22:20, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

• Thanks! I've made some quick changes to Waulking song to reflect the info you gave me. It's not brilliant prose though; I'm not exactly a fantastic writer so any help you can give me would be much appreciated. Ruaraidh-dobson 22:46, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

• Excellent! We've got a good article on the go now - I think whisky's in order, to celebrate in the spirit of things! Ruaraidh-dobson 23:41, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

Oh, and I just watched the video you sent me. It really makes me want to go and take part in a milling frolic - I'll have to go to Cape Breton some day! Ruaraidh-dobson 23:43, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

• Hmm... reading various articles (now I'm back looking at traditional Scottish culture) has made me realise how deficient wikipedia's article on Puirt a Beul is. I'm going to look around for information to add, but maybe you know a bit about it? Any help is much appreciated, as always! Ruaraidh-dobson 23:55, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

Congressional session dates

Dates are better formatted the way they had been before you recently edited a few recent Congresses. I know that many of the other Congresses weren't the same, but the way I've copied below is a lot clearer. I suggest that all Ordinal Congress articles be formatted this way:

Example which I think is better (from 106th United States Congress):

Two sessions, roughly paralleling the calendar years 1999 and 2000:

• First Session: January 6, 1999 – November 22 1999
• Second Session: January 24 2000 – December 15 2000

Furthermore, after 1800, mention of the city is pointless as Washington, DC has been the capital since then.

—Markles 21:13, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

Re: Logo confusion

Hallo Dave, you are right...The sentence about the logo is the only part which was already in the stub: anyway, shame on myself! Actually, there are several version of the coat of arms of this rione. In another one, the angels stands on a devil who is on the ground. Anyway, I will update the article according to your note.

Many thanks,

alex2006 11:55, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

Alessandro, no problem. These angels keep dropping their tools and symbols. I just thought I'd make a note about what confused me. I certainly couldn't say which logo was correct. — OtherDave 13:13, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

Personally, I prefer an Angel who slices fish, working as fish monger, to another one who loses his/her time waving a palm branch... ;-) .

alex2006 13:37, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

The symbols often matter, but at least for human saints (as opposed to angels), carrying a palm branch was a sign of martyrdom. Usually, though, they carry some more specific symbol, like the sword of St. Paul or the gridiron of St. Lawrence. Angels can't be martyrs, though, so I guess in his (her?) case it's just handy to praise God when He walks by.

A lecturer at Chartres Cathedral told me that you can tell which saints carved on the building are apostles, because their feet are bare. (Isaiah 52:7, "how beautiful on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good tidings.")

— OtherDave 13:44, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

This is quite interesting. I read the meaning of the palm branch in this case, but I have to check at home where, since I don't remember it anymore. When I'll find it, I will tell you. Thanks for the copyediting, I changed it a little bit, now i think that should be OK. And, BTW, if you appreciated (besides the italo-roman-english) my article, you can read also this one here... ;-)

ciao and many thanks,

alex2006 11:00, 23 August 2006 (UTC)

Alex, I'm happy to work with the Italo-Roman-English. My knowledge of Italian and Roman is zero, but I can manage English. Please let me know if I seem to get the meaning wrong. (Hey, does this mean I have to work through all the rioni?) — OtherDave 14:09, 23 August 2006 (UTC)

Covering all the rioni? Ehi, it's a great idea, all together they are only 22 (and the historic ones are only fourteen)! It would have been much worse if I had decided to write one article for each roman church (only in the centre there are more than 200 of them), but unfortunately ;-) someone already did it...

Anyway, back to work ;-). Yes, Augustus demolished part of the Circus, most likely to build the theater of Marcellus. What remained at the end was the square that you can see in the picture representing a small part of the mythical Plastico of the imperial Rome by Gismondi which I put in the article.

And yes, in the theater were played mostly tragedies and comedies.

But you MUST visit Rome! If one is interested in art and history, it is definitely the address number one (at least on planet Earth) ;-).

alex2006 14:44, 23 August 2006 (UTC)

Puirt a beul

Thank you; I have no idea why I did that! Ruaraidh-dobson 20:35, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

• I don't know - when I did music at school it was always puirt. Then again, I don't know gaelic. Ruaraidh-dobson 22:21, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

Parties in Congress

I contacted congress' website about it and they gave me answers. it's something like 5 senators and 20 congressmen. Pellaken 14:27, 5 September 2006 (UTC)

Alasdair MacMhaighstir Alasdair

By all means re-write to your hearts content. Pretty much the entire thing was stuck together and translated from a gaelic bio him so its no surprise that it doesnt read as well as it could do. Its good to know somebody else has taken an interest in improving the article. siarach 18:53, 3 December 2006 (UTC)

Althing

Thank you for your note. I'm afraid that I may have fallen into taking a somewhat severe line in these matters, against the various nationalisms that would insist on our using Nuernberg and Roma and Firenze. (Oddly, none of the foreign Wikipedias seem to have any trouble spelling London in accordance with their speechways.)

I do distinguish between usage in English, and use of an Icelandic word cited in English (in italics, for example). But it is true that almost all Icelanders speak very good English. Septentrionalis PMAnderson 02:04, 28 April 2007 (UTC)

Re: Ft. Belvoir and retreat

Hey O.D.--

You flatter me by supposing that I have a ton of experience in this matter. I don't, unfortunately. However, I do know brilliant people that do and am awaiting a return email from them with an educated answer to your query. I'm sorry you got caught up in this whole mess; I had been happily involved with the Military Brat project early on, but it was folks like that that turned me off of the project and I haven't been back since yesterday. Meh. --ScreaminEagle 17:58, 1 May 2007 (UTC)

An educated response, as promised:

"Anyone on a military installation who can hear the sound of Retreat is supposed to stop what they are doing and render honors to the flag as it is lowered. I don't recall being on Ft. Belvoir when that happened but I would guess that anyone who was near the headquarters building at the proper time (I think the Army sticks with 1700) would at least hear a recorded version played over loudspeakers. As you may know, only one U.S. flag ("The Garrison Flag") is supposed to be flown on an installation, in front of the HQs building, and it would be in that vicinity that you would likely see this custom observed. Belvoir is a big place and is divided into North and South post and there are other parts that are off on their own. This makes it very difficult to have everyone observe the correct procedure. On the Henderson Hall Marine Base they lower the flag at sunset and you had better believe that traffic comes to a halt and people get out of their cars. Belvoir may have slipped into the "office park" mode and maybe they don't do it there, but tell the guy who says they don't do this anymore not to be on Ft. Bragg or Ft. Hood at 1700."

Hope this helps! --ScreaminEagle 22:54, 1 May 2007 (UTC)

And I know the moment has passed, but my father chimed in with his response as well, so with respect to him I'll still include it in this discussion:

"My recollections are rather dated I'm afraid, since I haven't been on a military installation at retreat for many years. However, my recollections are as follows. On those occasions when I was on an Army base at 1700, everyone who was able to hear the music, or, who observed other vehicles whose occupants heard the music, did stop their cars, did get out of the vehicles, did face the sound of the music and rendered proper respect. They saluted if in uniform and held their hands over their hearts if they were civilians or military not in uniform. I think I saw that on several occasions when on Air Force bases as well, but it definitely made more of an impression on the Army bases. I know that while I was a squadron commander at Whiteman AFB, we held formal retreats each Friday for the flag lowering ceremony, with each squadron on the base forming up in proper formation, complete with the old saluting the Base Commander and stating 'All present or accounted for, sir!'"

Good times, I'm sure. I also find it interesting in that the university I went to was particularly anal about retreat. Loudspeakers broadcast the National Anthem across the campus and everyone had better stop, face the direction of the flag at the front of campus, and render respect, or risk being stared down as a communist. Intersting, no?

Yeah, I worked on the Military Brat thing to get it approved for GA status. By the time it went up for FA, I had so many problems with it I didn't vote for it. I tried to help, noting many, many cases of broad generalizations and confusing language, etc., but when I brought it up to the main editor he got very defensive (which was strange since we had been on such good footing prior to that) and then refused to make the changes. It's changed even more since that time and I don't particularly care for it. I'm not going to throw out insults and such because I honestly believe the article has potential if all the crap got cleaned up, and I still like the idea of it, but what's there now is not what I had ever envisioned as FA quality stuff. Shame.

And it took me a while, but I have two answers to your question. The first memorial to FDR was actually the dime. The second memorial, erected in 1966, was largely based upon instructions FDR himself had left: "[P]laced in the center of that green plot [in front of the National Archives in Washington D.C. should be] ... a block about the size of this (putting his hand on his desk). I don't care what it is made of, whether limestone or granite or what not, but I want it to be plain, without any ornamentation, with the simple carving 'In memory of....'" Learn something new every day.

And now a quiz for you: what is the only state capital that does not have an airport? --ScreaminEagle 16:43, 4 May 2007 (UTC)

The Poems of Alexander MacDonald Inverness 1924 editors A and A MacDonald

The poems of Alexander Macdonald (Mac Mhaighstir Alasdair) autor(s): Alexander MacDonald - 1924 - P. 408 Gaelic text and English translation on facing pages.

Dear O.D., I'm really sorry to bother you, but do you happen to know where I can find the book above, either online or printed? Dmitry —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.185.191.187 (talk) 17:26, 27 July 2008 (UTC)

Thingly thanks

Thanks OtherDave for your thing one and thing two to enjoy, for the heads up and Annie so touching. One because I often wonder where the French hang around; and two I'm impressed by the depth of feeling in poems like this. Merci,  : ) Julia Rossi (talk) 23:27, 28 July 2008 (UTC)

Merci for that. Mon Français est si cassé comme une immigrée, mais je fera cela, merci heaps FD, (par example la plupart du temps au présent *groan*), no doubt it will help me improve, hey... Julia Rossi (talk) 23:39, 28 July 2008 (UTC)

Cool. Although chatting in text you can't pronounce it too bad, hehe and I like reading some articles in the french pedia Julia Rossi (talk) 23:49, 28 July 2008 (UTC)

Sweet -- will hava go. Best, Julia Rossi (talk) 07:50, 29 July 2008 (UTC)

Added

Hello, OtherDave. Having noticed your regular and helpful edits to the reference desk, I took the liberty of adding your name (your signature, even) to this list. I hope you don't mind, but of course you're free to remove it, if you don't wish to be associated with the bunch of other sigs listed there :) ---Sluzzelin talk 17:59, 1 August 2008 (UTC)

Sénat américain / US Senate

I saw your questions at the Reference Desk. Let me know if I can help. (I have email activated.) I live in the Washington DC area, et je parle français au niveau moyen. Peut-être j'apprendrai aussi en vous aidant. OtherDave (talk) 01:16, 5 August 2008 (UTC)

(in English) Thanks for the help proposal. My next question will probably about the US governor position. I would like to write an article about it on the French Wikipedia but I only find a List of current United States governors (same in French WP) and a short paragraph in the Governor article in the English Wikipedia. I think most of position elements between all the US States governors should be closed enough (power,qualifications, elections, relations with State legislature) for a such article.

(in French) Merci pour la proposition d'aide. Ma prochaine question risque probablement de concerner la fonction de gouverneur d'état américain. J'aimerai en rédiger un article sur le Wikipédia en français mais je n'ai trouvé sur le Wikipédia en anglais qu'une Liste des gouverneurs actuels (pareil sur le WP en français) et un court paragraphe dans l'article Governor. Je pense que la plupart de ce qui constitue la fonction (pouvoir, candidatures, élections, relations avec la législature de l'État, etc.) doivent pourtant être suffisamment similaires pour un tel article.}}

Rgd / Cdt. TCY (talk) 13:36, 6 August 2008 (UTC)

De rien, TCY. Tu as raison; les gouverneurs sont très semblable. Les differences principaux, je crois, sont des choses comme ceux-ci: la durée du terme, quelques pouvoirs (comme "line item veto," pouvoir de mettre un veto à un part du budget), si le nombre des termes est limité ("term limited"). Par exemple, en Californie, le gouverneur ne sert pas plus de deux termes. Mais en Virginie, il n'en sert qu'un -- mais après 4 ans, il peut servir un autre term, puis attendres 4 ans, puis servir encore... (le seul état comme ça; je l'a trouvé un peu bizarre quand j'ai vit en Virginie.)

As-tu vu ceci? Pour chaque état, longeur du term, limites, salaire, l'age minimum, si le gouverneur a le pouvoir de véto, etc. Tu vois aussi que pas tous les états ont un lieutenant-gouverneur. OtherDave (talk) 17:00, 6 August 2008 (UTC)

Thanks a lot. So I embark on this article, then ...some more questions :

• Are all governors elected by universal suffrage, no one by state legislature ? Y I found this answer on the Governor article.

Yes, all governors are directly elected. If a governor dies, resigns, or is removed from office, then the lieutenant governor becomes governor. This happened most recently in New York, where Eliot Spitzer resigned and David Paterson became governor.

• Recall elections exist in California and 14 others states but only used two times : California 2003 and North Dakota 1921, correct ?

That sounds right, though there are 18 states that allow recall (see this site). Recall is not specific to the governor's office; voters could recall, say, a state representative or a state senator. The District of Columbia (meaning Washington, D.C.) does not have a governor, only a mayor and a city council (D.C. is not a state, but is often considered like one for these purposes).

• Is it relevant to compare how a state goverment (the three branches) works with the US government ?

I think so. Each state has its own constitution (Georgia's constitution is supposedly the longest in the world) based on the federal model, so state governments in reflect the federal system. 49 of the states have bicameral legislatures (two houses); Nebraska is the only one with a single house. There are differences in how state choose judges (see state supreme courts), but each state has its own court system. Decisions by the state supreme court on state issues are binding not only on the state but on the federal government -- in other words, on matters of Montana law, the U. S. Supreme Court cannot overrule the Montana supreme court. (Of course, the U.S. court could decide that there was a federal issue.)

• Each governor of a state with death penalty have the pardon right ?

"Pardon" generally means that you are released from prison. Most states have a process for "clemency" which can include pardoning some one or, more often, commuting (changing) a sentence (e.g., from death to life in prison). This page summarizes clemency and links to this summary, which says that in some cases the governor must have a recommendation from a board or other body. For example, this article tells me that the governor of Connecticut does not have pardon power on his own -- but that the issue is debatable even within the state.

• Is it correct to say Congress of the State when talking about the Senate and the House of a state ?

No, I've never heard that term, ever. "Congress" in the U.S. is always taken to mean the Congress of the United States. For states, "the state legislature" would be the most common term. Within a state, newspapers and reports tend to use "the legislature," or the name of the state capital -- e.g., "lawmakers in Albany discussed the highway bill." Usually the state itself has a more formal name. For example, Maryland has the Maryland General Assembly (equivalent to "Congress") made up of the House of Delegates (like "House of Representatives") and the Senate. The Massachusetts legislature is the General Court of Massachusetts. Names vary quite a bit for the lower house, but in general the upper house is the senate. Also, some states, like Maryland where I live, have so-called multi-member districts. I have one state senator, but I have four state representatives (members of the House of Delegates). The multi-member districts are one way to cope with population increase. In Virginia, by contrast, there are 100 districts for the house of delegates, each with a single member. Such districts are periodically reapportioned (changed in size or shape) to account for population shifts.

By the way, you may know this, but in 49 of the states, the governor has the power to appoint someone when one of the state's U.S. Senate seats becomes vacant (e.g., through death or resignation). The appointment is generally an interim one until the next general election or, in some cases, until a special election can be called. In 2002, the former U. S. Senator from Alaska was elected governor of that state; one month into office, he appointed his daughter to the Senate! OtherDave (talk) 11:37, 7 August 2008 (UTC)

Cdt. TCY (talk) 03:49, 7 August 2008 (UTC)

Thanks !. Here is the french article Gouverneur des États-Unis. I think I will relax a little by writing a small global article tonight about US presidential yachts (I have already translated USS Mayflower (PY-1) yesterday before coming back on the US institutions. TCY (talk) 16:21, 7 August 2008 (UTC)

Good job. I wouldn't dare undertake anything like this for the French national assembly (or even the one in Quebec). One small thing: the article mentions that each state has a house and a senate; the Nebraska legislature has only one house. Its members are called senators. (This may not be important enough for your governor article; I just wanted to point it out.) OtherDave (talk) 00:16, 8 August 2008 (UTC)

State Cabinets

TCY: I thought I'd break this up... OtherDave (talk) 14:05, 8 August 2008 (UTC)

Ok, I've added the Nebraska exception. I've also to improve the role the State Cabinet and others executive officials (Lieutenant-governor and secretary of State) which are not clear for me :

• In the states where a formal cabinet exists, this cabinet have the same role for the state that the US Cabinet for the Union ?

"Cabinet" is often used informally to mean the heads of major departments of the executive branch. (Same is true for the president's cabinet.) There is no official meaning, except that in the U.S. constitution and in the constitutions of of most states, a few cabinet offices are specifically mentioned. In practice, as I'm sure is true in France, some cabinet officers have more power and influence than others. Michigan has a department of History, Arts, and Libraries, which is less important to the working of the state government than the Attorney General or the Treasury.

Unlike the British parliamentary government (I don't know enough about France), members of the president's cabinet are not and may not be members of the legislature. Different states will have different cabinet offices, but the principle is the same: the department is in charge of some branch of the state's bureaucracy.

• Are cabinet members all nominees by Governor or some elected ? And if nominee, shall the State Senate should confirm their nomination

In many states, a few of the cabinet officers are elected (in Vermont, for example, the treasurer, secretary state, and state auditor are elected). Other cabinet officers must be confirmed in some states, but I am not an expert and don't know if that's true for all states. It is true, for example, in New York and Maryland. Elected cabinet officers do NOT have to be confirmed, because all state constitutions derive their power from the people of the state. Thus someone directly elected is a reflection of the will of the people and cannot be overturned by the legislature, except in the case of impeachment.

• The role of Lieutenant Governor (except for the vacancy of Governor position) ?

Typically the lieutenant governor also serves as president of the state senate, in the way that the vice-president serves as president of the U.S. Senate. The governor often assigns some special projects to the lieutenant governor, but it's often not a very important role -- until the governor dies, leaves office, or is removed from office.

In some cases, the lieutenant governor is elected separately from the governor, and so can be a member of a different party. This is true, for example, in Texas. Texas is also an example of a state in which the lieutenant governor has the governor's power if the governor is out of the state. (Texas is regarded as having a relatively weak governor, meaning the office does not have as much power as in other states; the Texas lieutenant governor, by virtue of his role in the state senate, has more power than many of his peers. You can see what would happen in Texas with a Democratic governor but a Republican lieutenant governor in charge of a state senate also controlled by Republicans.) And here is a complete list of the official duties of the lieutenant governor of the state of Washington.

• The role of secretary of States, is he elected ? , member of State Cabinet ?

In many states, the secretary of state is elected. The duties vary, depending on the state. Often but not always, the secretary of state oversees the state election process (issuing regulations, approving the ballot, etc.). In Michigan, where I grew up, she is also in charge of regulating driving and automobiles -- e.g., issuing driver's licenses, automobile license plates, registration of vehicles, etc. In Maryland, however, there's a separate board of elections; here, the secretary of state has nothing to do with elections. On the other hand, the Maryland secretary of state is in charge of extraditions (delivering accused criminals to other states), pardons, commutations, etc. The office of secretary of state for a state is not generally as important a role as the U.S. secretary of state, who is in charge of what other countries call the foreign ministry. And yes, the secretary of state is regarded as a member of the governor's cabinet.

I had a look on the National Assembly of France. Not bad but with some vagueness and too formal. Not enough on his political role (or lack of political role !). I will try to improve it but i'm not sure I have enough vocabulory or nuances of language to express it correctly. TCY (talk) 04:26, 8 August 2008 (UTC)

I read a biography of Charles de Gaulle (can't remember the name of the French author) and saw that the presidency was a kind of small kingship, so le grand Charlot could float above petty politics and tell France what to do... OtherDave (talk) 14:05, 8 August 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for the State cabinet informations.

For the "Grand Charlot" you're right, the French Fifth Republic constitution was done specifically for him. But it was done in a special context with the Algerian war we are not able to ended, successive weak governments and a serious political crisis in France. And we created what some call an "Elected monarchy" with a "King President" elected for seven years (!) who appointed a Prime minister for the daily politics... And that's true that the french president have much power than anywhere else in west democracies (not in the East Europe where they, like in Poland or in Romania, duplicated the French constitution and ... now have the same problems) even if most of this Power do not come from written rules. Things have begun to change during this last 10 years, for example with the french medias begin to be a real "fourth power" they never have been before, under De Gaulle, Pompidou, Giscard and Mitterrand presidencies...

This constitution did not a provide a case : if the president and the Assembly (so the Prime minister because as the Assembly can dismiss him and his government, Prime minister and government are most often sam political side than the Assembly majority) are not on the same political side. In De Gaulle mind that couldn't happen. He would have dismissed immediatly because he would have lost what he called "his direct link with the People of France", so the Constitution rules do not provided this case. But as the term of the presidency was 7 years and the Assembly one 5 years, this issue could arise. It also could happen with the presidential constitutional right to make a dissolution of the Assembly. In the 1968 French political crisis, De Gaulle did a such dissolution of the National Assembly but the new and large Assembly gaullist majority sat again his legimity. One year after, in 1969, he made a referendum for Constitutional changes he wanted (the decision of referendum is an another constitutional presidential right) but he lost. He decided to quit few days after. Mitterrand lost two times the "mid-term" legislative elections (1986 and 1993) but he stayed (so we experimented for the first time what we have call "cohabitation", a new political word meaning live together but doesn't want it !). The President lost most of his powers and working with a Prime minister and a government of the political opposite side. The president and Prime minister do what they can to put spoke in the wheel of the other because they will both be candidates fot the further presidential election (and Mitterrand and his Prime minister Chirac are in this kind of game as tricky as Nixon could be !) Not very efficient for the country... Only two years after been elected, President Chirac decided to made a dissolution, in 1997 (probably thinking to be in a best situation than waiting for the normal term election) but his party lost the Assembly and Chirac do not dismissed. Five years of cohabitation ! For his second term, he lost a referendum (about the European constitution) and not dismissed again. By the way, he weakened a lot the position.

Now we have Sarkozy, speedy Sarkozy, new style, who do the job of the President, but also the works of the Prime minister and also of some Ministers... A kind of "new cohabitation" with a Prime Minister of his political side ! (The 2007 political good words, choosen by a press jury, was "Sarkozy, the first who has been elected President to be the Prime minister").

Even if we have constitutional changes this last 10 years, many constitutional pundits keep saying that we might change for a presidential system like in the US, or for a parliamentary system like in Germany, England or Spain (and in France before 1958) but not stay in this "middle of the river" system. TCY (talk) 16:18, 9 August 2008 (UTC)

Si tu écris en anglais, il me faut essayer français. C'est aussi comme ça avec nos présidents -- les fondateurs des États-Unis ont choisi délibérément d'avoir une lutte sans cesse contre le président et le congrès. Bush et particulièrement Cheney ont travaillé pour accumuler plus de la pouvoir en l'exécutif. En fait, Cheney a dit que sa position n'est pas part ni de l'exécutif ni du législatif. Apparemment, il est comme la qualité de clémence qui tombe, comme la pluie douce des cieux, sur la terre... OtherDave (talk) 17:00, 9 August 2008 (UTC)

US Presidential yacht

I've also written this more futile article Yachts des présidents des États-Unis but to not "pestering you with my damn questions", I posted a message about presidentials yacht. TCY (talk) 06:34, 8 August 2008 (UTC)

Pas de soucis, je t'assure. Si je peux te donner une réponse, je le ferai; sinon, ou si je manque le temps, je te dirai. OtherDave (talk) 14:10, 8 August 2008 (UTC)

Well I've posted a message on the Reference desk and also on the on Wikiproject Ships about the presidential yachts to improve my fr:Yachts des présidents des États-Unis, but not very successfull. I've already translated USS Mayflower, USS Potomac, USS Williamsburg and also USS Sequoia that I improved with seeing the channel documentary, which, big surprise for me, I almost understood ! If you are interested in a National Historic Landmark not far away from your home, look at it... (and if you do (bit do not do it for that), just tell me the name of the fist purchaser of the yacht, the Rhode Island businessmen i did not catch and the name of the place the told were D Day have been decided)

État des États-Unis

Ensuite un article plus sérieux. Je vais réécrire l'article sur le Wikipédia en français sur fr:État des États-Unis (U.S. state). Avec déjà des premières questions :

• Y a t'il une différence entre l'Union (The Union) et les États-Unis d'Amérique (United States of America) (avec la première l'ensemble des 50 États et la seconde les 50 États + le District de Columbia + les territoires) ?

Je pense que non. On dit "l'Union" pour les États-Unis eux-même (les états avec la capitale). Tu sais que pendant la guerre civile, on parlait souvent de l'armée de l'Union. "L'Union" est peut-être un peu plus poètique.

• Est ce que la question de Puerto Rico comme 51e État est une question d'actualité (a current affair) ou pas vraiment.

Encore, je pense que non. En Puerto Rico, les deux partis (PNP, pour "statehood", et PPD, pour rester comme "commonwealth") sont presque égals. Alors, ça me dit que les Puerto Ricans eux-mêmes ne sont pas sûr qu'ils veulent devenir un état. Aux E-U, les gens ne paient pas beaucoup d'attention ni à P.R., ni à D.C. (qui manquent les deux les vrais représentifs en Congrès). Aussi, je crois que, avec les movements "English First" (Brassens a pu dire, "Anglais d'abord") pour faire l'anglais comme la langue officielle des E-U), on aurait beaucoup de difficulté de faire PR le 51ère état.

• Est ce qu'un État (ou un territoire) peut constitutionnellement quitter l'Union ? (sans faire une seconde guerre de sécession !)

Question très compliqué. J'ai trouvé ceci, qui dit "avec permission, peut-être; sans, non." La constitution ne dit rien sur ce sujet (comment un état peut partir?). Abraham Lincoln a dit que, bien qu'un partie peut enfreindre un contrat, l'annuler exige l'accord de toutes les parties. (Je te previens, je ne suis pas expert dans ces choses!)

J'écris aussi les questions sur le Reference Desk. Merci TCY (talk) 15:40, 11 August 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for this answers. For English first, I found funny that Gobernator Swchartzy, with his strong german accent, was a member of it !
I read that Louisiana and also Maine who where interresting to join the Francophonie organization (as Quebec and New Brunswick did as Canadian provinces) were not able to do it because an american state coudl not join a international organization (only the USA could do it).
I will create Français d'abord for the secession of Acadiane ! TCY (talk) 11:26, 12 August 2008 (UTC)

I lived in Maine during my high school years. At my school, at least 70% of the students had French-Canadian origins (names like Boissoneault, Gagné, Thibodeault, Doucet, Vallière), and at graduation, one of the four student speeches was in French. There are also pockets of French speakers in New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts. Most of them, I think, are descendants of Quebecois who came to the U.S. in the late 19th and early 20th century to work in the wood, paper, or textile industries.

Following up on the term "the Union," in some ways it's a bit old-fashioned. Stephen Vincent Benet's poem, The Devil and Daniel Webster, has Webster asking, "How stands the Union?" (Meaning, are the states still strongly united?) And of course the Constitution itself uses the phrase "to form a more perfect Union.") It's unusual to hear someone speak of the union today, unless it's for the State of the Union address, but it does happen. 13:58, 12 August 2008 (UTC)

Tinfoil writers award

To you, OtherDave for the most amusing RasPutin story -- when is the book coming out?! ~ : )) Julia Rossi (talk) 23:35, 7 August 2008 (UTC)

Absolutely, ;) Julia Rossi (talk) 00:25, 8 August 2008 (UTC)

Russians in Texas?

Or is it Texans in Russia -- how is that? I am curious to know more, Julia Rossi (talk) 00:10, 14 August 2008 (UTC)

I think it was in Hendrick Smith's book (cleverly titled The Russians) where I read the analogy. the idea was that Russians, like Texans, are gregarious, prone to exaggeration, often over-the-top, etc. — OtherDave (talk) 01:27, 14 August 2008 (UTC)

Fair use help please

Since you're listed in the Fair Use wikiproject, I'd like your help: someone keeps trying to justify using a big piece of copyrighted text under fair use, as you can see at the bottom of my talk page. I don't do a ton of work with images and/or copyrights (I virtually never upload any images, except my own PD-self creations); could you help me? Nyttend (talk) 02:31, 14 August 2008 (UTC)

Troll costumes

I thought your answer and comment both were excellent and right on the mark. Kudos to you. --Tagishsimon (talk) 22:39, 28 August 2008 (UTC)

Offline Information

I've read your reply here Wikipedia:Reference desk/Humanities#Offline Information several times and I still don't know what it means, or even to what it refers. Would you help my confused brain with a little more explanation? Thanks ៛ Bielle (talk) 20:56, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

Mostly, it refers to Mr. K's habit of asking questions that seem pointless to me. I came across three or four as I scanned the reference desk today. The specific question was "What kind of information can't be found online?" So I provided three "answers." The first is a commonly heard question that has no answer, online or off. The second is a Latin classic, "Who will guard the guards?" And the third may or may not be a veiled critique of the original question. Not that I think Mr. K spends all his time in a basement. --- OtherDave (talk) 00:53, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

I was fine up to the pizza comment. You can download pizza after a fashion. You can order on line and have it deleivered to your basement. Thanks for your explanation. ៛ Bielle (talk) 01:10, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

It was perhaps an implication that the ideal, for some people, would be direct download of pizza, being all internet-y and whatnot. --- OtherDave (talk) 01:20, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Washington DC

Hello Dave, I've been in Washington DC for the election day and the day after. Quick tour but 2 fines and a toll away for my car ! I will probably be in DC an another day, sunday or monday. I want to see the USS Sequoia because i've writted the WP French article and the library of Congress. Do you have an idea for - a location to park the car away - something not to miss (i've already seen Smithonian and Newseum and walk around in the Federal Triangle) I could also be interested in something not to miss in Maryland and Delaware. I'm in Richmond tonight and probably be in Norfolk today. Thanks TCY

Salut, TCY

My favorite place to visit in DC: the Franklin Roosevelt Memorial, near the Tidal Basin. It's free, it's outdoors. To stick with the history theme, the National Portrait Gallery has a special exhibit of photos of Abraham Lincoln.

If you're going to the Library of Congress, I suggest you park at Union Station (big multi-story garage); it's only a few blocks to the Library, past some of the most famous Washington buildings. Also, you can easily take the Metro from Union Station. There is no convenient Metro station for Maine Avenue, but you could take a taxi fairly cheaply.

Also, the Dubliner restaurant (North Capitol Street and F Street, in the Phoenix Park Hotel) is just a block or so from Union Station. Good food and Guinness on tap. --- OtherDave (talk) 04:25, 9 November 2008 (UTC)

Thanks a lot for your quick answers and the informations. TCY (talk) 17:14, 9 November 2008 (UTC)

De rien. Tu iras lundi? Si j'ai su, peut-etre nous nous rencontrerions. --- OtherDave (talk) 01:13, 10 November 2008 (UTC)

I'm little bit late on my program. I leave Norforlk this afternoon and go to Washington by the Chesapeake Bay bridge. I will be in DC tonight (monday) and tomorrow and go back to New York tomorrow night. Ok pour une rencontre mais je n'ai plus de batteries sur mon téléphone cellulaire so not easy for a meeting time and point. TCY (talk) 19:41, 10 November 2008 (UTC)

The FDR Memorial was a good idea, i turned arouund the tidal basin and also visited the Jefferson one. I probably go to the Dubliner restaurant now. TCY (talk) 22:08, 11 November 2008 (UTC)

Le FDR m'émouvoit, particulièrement au nuit, avec les ombres et l'esprit de Roosevelt. Le New York Times a écrit, le jour après son mort, qu'en cent ans, les hommes remercieront encore Dieu sur ses genoux que Franklin Roosevelt était dans la Maison Blance.

J'espère que tu auras un bon répas au Dubliner. Essaie-toi "le cadeau du prince" -- sur une bouteille de Drambuie, il y a ces mots: Cuimhnich an tabhartas prionnsa ("Souvenez-vous le cadeau du prince"). Les histoires disent que la recette pour Drambuie était un cadeau donné à un MacKinnon par Bonnie Prince Charles (Charles Edouard Stuart) en 1746. --- OtherDave (talk) 22:44, 11 November 2008 (UTC)

Homer

Nice one, Homy – enjoyed your excellent well-turned comment, OD, ... =) Julia Rossi (talk) 22:16, 21 November 2008 (UTC)

It was too fat a target to miss... all that blather about Ulysses, when that's the anglicized version of his Latin name. And with all the chatter on the RefDesk, like the man of twists and turns, we must have some surcease. --- OtherDave (talk) 00:22, 22 November 2008 (UTC)

Ithaca. ;) Julia Rossi (talk) 06:02, 22 November 2008 (UTC)

card

Happy Christmas from Australia!

Happy Christmas, OtherDave. May you find time to refresh yourself, and may you continue to make a difference in 2009 ~ from Julia R. o<| =)

Julia Rossi (talk) 00:21, 12 December 2008 (UTC)

Translation please

I luv it, and what does it say?  :) Julia Rossi (talk) 02:03, 12 December 2008 (UTC)

ping Julia Rossi (talk) 01:36, 22 December 2008 (UTC)

PS and Thanks for the wishes in that mysterious tongue. : )

Thanks for apple info

Thanks for your answer to my question about Depression-era apple sellers. I appreciate it! --Lph (talk) 18:04, 5 January 2009 (UTC)

You're welcome--it was the sort of thing to tickle my curiosity. I figured the 5-cent thing had to be low enough that a person pinched for money might spend it, yet profitable enough to make it worthwhile trying to sell the things. --- OtherDave (talk) 14:49, 6 January 2009 (UTC)

new WP:RDREG userbox

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Hi

I posted comments here (Wikipedia:Reference desk/Language#Intern)--202.168.229.245 (talk) 11:30, 27 January 2009 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Reference desk/Language#Intern

Hi there, I have added bit there. It would be great if you take a look that issue. Thank you--202.168.229.245 (talk) 19:59, 27 January 2009 (UTC)

New image project

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Zdzisław

Oops! -- Deborahjay (talk) 21:10, 25 August 2009 (UTC)

BBC link on the Language Reference Desk

Thanks for the edit. Obviously only half awake when I inserted that link. What a wikidunce! -- Александр Дмитрий (Alexandr Dmitri) (talk) 15:19, 29 August 2009 (UTC)

Not at all; if I had a dollar for every time I've gotten some part of a link wrong (too many square brackets, too few, whatever), I'd have...well, a lot of dollars. --- OtherDave (talk) 16:00, 30 August 2009 (UTC)

What part of "gestalt" don't you understand?

OtherDave: it's Karsten, best as I know, originator of the phrase "What part of 'gestalt' don't you understand". Saw your note about running across a bumper sticker with that text on it. I'm curious as to where. 75.209.187.91 (talk) 21:57, 26 September 2009 (UTC)Karsten M. Self (yeah, there's a Wikipedia account somewhere, no idea where anymore).

Karsten: I've sent a reply to a Linux email I found for you. --- OtherDave (talk) 18:12, 28 September 2009 (UTC)

Have a nice day!

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Thanks for the Ford T link

Thanks a lot Dave !!. Actually, the question came to my mind while I was daring to write about our little Citroën car, the "2CV" , on the DP of the "word of the day : couple-close" , in Wiktionary. Indeed it does not reach EB White's lyricism , but for those who want to know what was the french equivalent of the Ford T model...& how come I thought of "Babbit" when it was "Cannery Row" !! Arapaima (talk) 04:50, 18 May 2010 (UTC)

De rien, Arapaima. Oui, je vois comment les Deux-Chevaux sont sembables aux Model T (c'est comme on les appelle toujours aux États-Unis). Même, plus tard, pour le VW Beetle (scarabée). --- OtherDave (talk) 16:06, 18 May 2010 (UTC)

Et merci aussi pour '"the Killer angels" ! (ce titre m'avait paru trop commercial...) Bien cordialement, Arapaima (talk) 08:40, 9 June 2010 (UTC)

Language userboxes

LOL, though I had to Google for the meaning of yours of course :-) I really don't understand why the Babel series are all about ability to edit in languages, when what really matters on any one Wikipedia is what else one can read. Plus it's based on a rating system that gives way, way too much attention to accentless speech. So I had a friend concoct me a set for the languages I can read and it seemed only fair to include the ones in which I am a drooling illiterate but know a few words '-) Yngvadottir (talk) 02:07, 22 June 2010 (UTC)

Hello

Thanks for answering my query here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Reference_desk/Humanities#Urban_Legend_or_History. The name is Vahan Shatouni ever heard or read of him ? -- Jon Ascton  (talk) 06:07, 17 July 2010 (UTC)

hey!

thanks for your help in the shakespeare assighnment otherdave. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Trishalsezsmile (talk • contribs) 16:05, 25 February 2011 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Trishalsezsmile (talk • contribs)

You're welcome. I hope the modern version gave you some incentive to work your way through the original--I think it's worth it. --- OtherDave (talk) 02:01, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

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