Geir Isene is reporting that there's a demonstration planned for April 9th outside a conference of the ISO group responsible for the OOXML travesty. Wish I could be in Oslo to join in...

No matter what you think about his politics, Ken Livingstone (the mayor of London) knows how to deal with the press. And found his response when a national newspaper apparently threatened to "expose" that he has three kids by two previous partners quite funny:

But all the people who have shared my private life at one point or another was [sic] on the basis it was private between us. And they didn't expect me to be pontificating on the TV about it."

I don't talk about my private life - it seems like only yesterday the press was trying to imply I was gay.

No one has ever found anything that was illegal or immoral. I have never discussed my private life because it is not a relevant factor.

I don't think anybody in this city will be shocked by what two consenting adults do, as long as you don't include children, animals and vegetables.

The whole thing makes the newspapers who today try their best to make his three previous children seem like a well kept secret look quite silly and immature (but then that's what the British tabloid press does best - even better than when they play vengeful vigilates) when he's not responding like someone caught with their hand in the cookie jar, and stabs them in the back by being all reasonable.

Of course a couple of people have already hooked on to the "vegetable" bit

As a Norwegian, I've been steaming all weekend over the decision of the Norwegian national body to vote for OOXML against the wishes of the technical committee. Promoting the repair shop philosophy is a good redux on the embarrassing decision. Tthe only votes for were reportedly from Standard Norge bureaucrats, Microsoft, and Statoil - a major Microsoft partner and customer. What do you do then? Of course you excuse all the people who votes against you, and vote again.

Makes you think certain dictators could learn a lot from Standard Norge.

On a related note, Alex Brown, who presided over the poor excuse for a ballot resolution meeting (pitiful despite the hard work of a lot of well meaning delegates who actually did try to make both the proposed standard and the process better - personally I find it hard not to lay a large share of the blame squarely on Alex Brown for that, unless practially all the reports coming out of the meeting are flat out wrong) in the OOXML fast track process, demonstrates that he either just plain can't understand why a lot of people thinks he's sold out, or he is pretending not to.

Yes, I'm bitter. It's extremely sad that an organization like ISO, as well as a large number of national bodies are prepared to let themselves be used as pawns in Microsofts game.

It's not over yet, by a long shot, but so far it's been pretty depressing.