That's right Miss Cellania. The poles were initially used for patients to grip tightly with a tourniquet applied on the upper arm - this way the veins would appear more prominently. Bloodletting was believed to cure all sorts of ills (one of Hippocrates' cockups). Blood would drip down the pole (leeches were subsequently used to increase the bleeding) and as you say MC, the poles would be hung out with bloody bandages that sometimes wrapped around. The ball represents the bowl (with leeches).

Interestingly, the two groups of surgeons - the barber surgeons and the 'real' medically-trained surgeons - had their own coloured poles. The two groups were amalgamated by force and maintained their own identities. The barbers had a blue and white pole, whereas the surgeons had the familiar red and white pole. So it's strange that the barbers later adopted this one. Some have interpreted the blue to mean venous blood and the red to mean arterial.

Tim, there are still two occasions we perform blood letting. But come on, it's a far more scientific than this psychiatry you talk of.

Barbers performed quite a lot of surgery (it was their role for hundreds of years, not doctors') such as tooth-extraction, amputations (often war-related), excisions etc. Blood-letting was one of their duties. The fact we call surgeons 'Mr' and physicians 'Dr' in the UK is a legacy of the barbershop surgeons (who didn't train in the same initial way).

Ah cheers Miss, I probably got the link from here in the first place!

Dude! This is a rip off from perhaps my favourite YouTube clip, Vader Sessions (infinitely funnier and way more work put in):

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=6A0rwG39Jzk

Man I love that, pure genius.

Jeez, you guys are suboptimal in your thought-processing.

You have to push the envelope people. You're not championing a multi-disciplinary best-practice-based moving target.

What you need is an user-centric, up-sized, right-sized mastered synergistic dashboard. You don't have to reinvent the wheel guys, just touch base with me when you've reached a prelim 3-pointer.

Can you tell I've spent the day writing job applications?

"There’s nothing wrong with being a homosexual!"

In Saudi Arabia there is.

Ted:

"Here we go again - let’s bash all Christians for something the wacky fundamentalists say"

Surely that's what we do for any religion...Muslims are bombers, Hindus worship a million gods and abuse low castes etc. Religions are defined by their more nutty followers. Not by the average people (apart from Scientology, where the average person IS a nutter).

Jerse, sometimes it's not wrong to say x is better than y. I am a product of several countries. I did not grow up in the West. If something is wrong in the country of my birth (India) then it is far more productive to say it instead of worrying about treading on toes and sounding like an arrogant Westerner. Only then do things progress. For example, I level the same criticism about women being treated poorly to a secular country like India (whilst not in the same league as Saudi Arabia). Don't confuse my views with 'Islamophobia'.

Of course rape is not exclusive to Saudi. But unfortunately the rate of conviction is almost exclusive to it, and the law towards rape is horrifically twisted in much of the Islamic world. A woman is de facto to blame for being raped. Women aren't even second class citizens, they're lower. We haven't even touched on the appalling racism in Saudi Arabia towards Africans, Asians etc. Whatever you may say, nothing on that level exists in the UK or US.

No one has denied prejudice or hatred towards Islam in the West. In fact I've written about it on several occasions (www.pickledpolitics.com - you can see our views on the matter) but I cannot fathom the logic in comparing Saudi Arabia, which is arguably the most unpleasant country in the world, with America. America has its flaws, I am perfectly aware of them and they are numerous, but to say I'm the one who has to open their eyes is risible.

"They wanted to ban the hijab in my country". Who is "they"? And as you intimated, they didn't. Fact is Muslims have more freedom in the UK than in most Islamic states, and I'm quite proud of that.

Lastly, I also don't disagree with your statement that the West might benefit from some modesty. But that doesn't mean we have to use Saudi as an example of something to emulate. "Admirable" is the wrong word.

Top Gear (one of which's presenters is featured in the Omaha Battle clip) recently pitted a Bugatti Veyron against an RAF Typhoon jet. However in this race, there was a mile out and in-bound leg. And the jet went up the same distance the car went forwards.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=fBfNzxILKMk

It's quite astonishing that anyone would try to put a positive slant on any aspect of living in the Middle East as a woman. I'm marrying a woman from a (far more liberal, but still conservative) Middle Eastern country and I'm perfectly liberal and I think your views are insane Jerse.

What complete tosh that a burka is refreshing so you don't have to wear makeup. No one HAS to wear makeup, you just need some self-esteem, which sadly women who cover up their face on the say-so of their husband don't have.

Secondly, to say children are free from crime is bullsh*t too. Young girls are routinely molested and nothing is done about it.

Lastly, Jerse you say that we're no better in America than in Saudi. I'm British, which is similar enough to the States and I don't even know where to begin with such a nonsensical statement.

If anyone's thinking of emigrating the the Middle East, one tip first - make sure you're male.

How crazy, the random article to give my band a name came up with the town I was born in in India. My album title was from a Mark Twain quote "Think she enjoyed it". So I asked my Mum if she enjoyed giving birth to me in that particular town.

She didn't.

I was about to shout at you silly Americans and say "only in the States", but damn you Sid Morrison, you spoiled my fun.

There are so many of these out there now. I always think "yeah cool idea, I'll do that!" I'm more than arrogant enough and I'm helluva beautiful so I'm sure everyone would watch it.

But then I realise I just can't be bothered. And no one would watch it.

Anyway, I just have to film myself concentrating for half an hour and I'll grow a beard (damn Indian genes).

How odd. I was just forwarded this:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=gbvWdVj4vGU&feature=related

I'm waiting for the wedding where the bride busts out a headspin whilst hubby airflares in the background. Hey...Prince William's wedding can't be far off, might boost the Royals' popularity.