Ancient Forces Cyber Bullying

Extreme harrassmnet, constant text messages, constant phone calls, ceaseless unreasonable demands. They got thier positions not because they were talneted journalists but because they were talented wheezlers, and as a sober threat with vast experience the deep voices that hid beneath, the underground streams that rueld our lives, these things that were pursued, which dominated behaviour in the modern office, was not open to rational explanation. We're not that far from the trees; and after being bashed and bullied throughout my childhood I'm not about to be bullied now.

THE STORY CONTINUES:

"She'd already had one miscarriage, falling pregnant within week of his first declaration that children were an option.

"Within days of telling him she miscarried, which solved the dilemma of trying to work out what to do. In any normal sense they simply hadn't known each other long enough. He got very pissed and cried in the pub. He had wanted the baby, no matter what. She sat up in bed with tears in her eyes. Someone was missing, someone had gone.

"There was a strangely intense passion in their lovemaking in the days after she recovered, as if she was deliberately trying to get pregnant again. There was nothing rational about it. They had barely known each other three months. Later, they were always puzzled how it had come about, how they had landed so solidly together, in such a way they couldn't imagine life without the other. They would never advise anyone to do what they had done. It was only luck that things had owrked out as well as they had. He had never even met her family before she fell pregnant with Sammy."

THE BIGGER STORY:


Can't believe Sydney isn't in there. It's hard to make ends meet in this town.

World's most expensive cities
Moscow wins again, with London as runner up. New York drops five places to No. 15, while San Francisco plunges 20 places to No. 54, according to Mercer's 2007 survey.

By Jeanne Sahadi, CNNMoney.com senior writer
June 18 2007: 9:56 AM EDT


NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- If your boss wants to transfer you to Moscow this year, he'd better offer you a fair sum to do so - or even a downright handsome one depending on where you live now. That's because Moscow has just been designated the world's most expensive city for the second year in a row by Mercer Human Resource Consulting.

Using the cost of living in New York as a base, Mercer determined Moscow is 34.4 percent more expensive after taking into account the cost of housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.


Moscow tops the list as the most expensive city for the second year in a row.

World's most expensive cities 2007
1. Moscow
2. London
3. Seoul
4. Tokyo
5. Hong Kong
6. Copenhagen
7. Geneva
8. Osaka
9. Zurich
10. Oslo
11. Milan
12. St. Petersburg
13. Paris
14. Singapore
15. New York City
16. Dublin
17. Tel Aviv
18. Rome
19. Vienna
20. Beijing


"The appreciation of the ruble against the U.S. dollar, combined with ever-increasing accommodation charges, has driven up costs for expatriates in Moscow," Mercer research manager Nathalie Constantin-Metral said in a statement.

A luxury two-bedroom in Moscow now rents for $4,000 a month; a CD costs $24.83, and an international newspaper, $6.30, according to Mercer. By comparison, a fast food meal with a burger is a steal at $4.80.

London takes the No. 2 spot, up from No. 5 a year ago, thanks to higher rents and a stronger British pound relative to the dollar. Mercer estimates London is 26 percent more expensive than Gotham these days.

Following closely on London's heels are Seoul and Tokyo -- Nos. 3 and 4, respectively -- both of which are 22 percent more expensive than New York, while No. 5 Hong Kong is 19 percent more costly.