La Dee-vina Comedia

So, on the other side of that same coin, if we're pretty close to last year's figure, that also means we must have about 7,000 new members. And that's about 20% of the current membership. That's impressive, although the non-renewal rate is equally unimpressive. The club needs to identify better ways to hold on to members - it should be easier to keep what you've got than continually finding new people to sign up.

And we're not even related!

The Carlton relationship with the AFL reminds me of the Kennedys and J Edgar Hoover. Each had something on the other which they used for their own protection. I wonder what Carlton has which makes the AFL bend over backwards to help them? (J Edgar Hoover had an audio recording made by the FBI of Bobby Kennedy being successfully seduced by Marilyn Monroe; the Kennedys had a photo of J Edgar Hoover with Clyde Tolson in a "compromising position". Side note: Bobby Kennedy was seduced the day he visited Marilyn to tell her she couldn't see JFK any more. It's all much more interesting than Stormy Daniels and Trump.)

No need to apologise and it wasn't poorly worded. I was just being a smart-thing. So, it's best that I apologise.

Just seeking clarification. Do they live elsewhere or have they all died?

So, I contacted the club today to find out that some genius decided to merge my details with another person with the same first and last name. The records now show that I have a different middle name, postal address and email but the same phone number. According to the MFC officer I spoke to that "genius" works for the Melbourne Cricket Club. On the plus side, my membership pack has been re-ordered, although how he knows for sure that I've actually paid my membership is beyond my understanding. If anyone out there is a Melbourne Cricket Club member waiting for their MFC membership pack to arrive, I recommend you call the club. Surely I'm not the only person this has happened to.

Is anyone else who renewed their membership last year still waiting for their membership package to arrive? If it's just me, I'll contact the club.

But for what purpose? I can't imagine the Court can be used to satisfy curiosity. Doesn't the plaintiff have to show how he/she/it has suffered something for which the Court is the only remedy? In other words...so what if there was a conspiracy? How has the plaintiff been wronged because of it (if there was one)?

Can someone summarise the cause of action that Julian Burnside is engaged for? I'm paywalled out of all News Ltd sites so I haven't been able to read the article. Without access to the article, I'm struggling to work out what the plaintiff is seeking and why. Using the usual logic doesn't generate any believable options.

I know it's not on the topic de jour, but in one sentence you've identified the AFL's two greatest fears with the northern expansion.

Meanwhile, the equivalent discussion on the Collingwood supporters' discussion board is whether Centrelink payments have kept pace with the price of ready to drink Southern Comfort and Coke.

I thought the GFC was the Geelong Football Club. (Just trying to bring this thread back to football. Arguing over past international economic events doesn't seem to belong here.)

Petracca has more powerful arms.

Can't agree. In my opinion it's still the most entertaining game in the world. I've been following the game for over 50 years, and contrary to the views of the doomsayers, the standard today is higher than it's ever been.

I don't know how good these seats were...but I gulped when I saw the price.

Here's a start. Call it e-sliced bread. Sure fire winner.

Is, or was, "Be part of the journey" being used by the club? I ask because I haven't seen it anywhere and in a tweet today the club has used "#RaiseHell".

Quite right. Now that you've mentioned the Clive James description , I think I might be mistaken about Mick Conlan's nickname.

I first heard this term used to describe Fitzroy's Mick Conlan. I don't recall him ever being accused of anything improper or having excess stress on his body. Must have had better quality condoms in the 80s.

I've only half-read one article, but it seemed to me the house in question may not be one that Bomber lives in. The article seemed to very carefully refer to the place as being owned but not necessarily lived in by Thompson, yet written in a way that might allow someone to infer that Bomber is the target without actually saying that was the case. If that's right, the raid may have nothing to do with him but rather with the tenant.

We should be able to spend the next three days and about 100 more posts questioning the meaning of a lack of "2018" on the scarf. Does this mean it will be the last scarf handed out free with memberships for the next few years? Or a decade? Or forever? Is it deliberate or is it just a design error? Or a manufacturing error? Has Jack Watts tampered with the knitting machinery? Or does it mean Hogan's off to Fremantle?

I see it the other way around...for an average club, it has quite powerful membership.

Canberra also has a high proportion of former Victorians, and to a lesser extent people ex-WA, SA and Tassie upon which GWS can build. I realise most will bring their loyalties with them, but any children they might raise in Canberra might prefer to follow a team which actually plays there on occasions.

I guess there's also a possibility that their members are split between Sydney and Canberra with those members not travelling between the cities. Mind you, I'm more inclined to believe the figures are fudged.

I wonder whether 'Old Dog' and 'Old Tiger' said something similar in 2016 and 2017 respectively. While you may well be right, why risk it? 2018 may well be our year.