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A Snowy Tribute to Calvin and Hobbes
posted by lacus at 11:40 PM PST - 21 comments

Seems the media's STILL scared of looking too closely into BUSH's history... and WHO helps him cover up on the way...
posted by samlam at 10:52 PM PST - 8 comments

A trifecta of photographic sites: TrekEarth,TrekLens and TrekNature.
posted by Gyan at 9:36 PM PST - 10 comments

Bring it trombONe! After watching this I am now wondering how fine a line there is between confidence and just being crazy. quicktime movie, some laughter may be required
posted by Hands of Manos at 9:30 PM PST - 41 comments

As we saw last spring, Toronto's York University has limited the student's right to protest, here noted by Excalibur, York's largest student newspaper. The Toronto Star's article on last Thursday's peaceful anti-Bush protest complete with police intervention (video here, try this if that doesn't work) sparked a reaction by the York University Faculty Association. YUFA also remarked on the restriction of freedom of expression by York's administration. The administration has released two press releases so far, the first on the day of the protest, and the second to emphasize the students' responsibilities and limits. The protest has sparked plans of further protests and reports that the protest was misrepresented in the press. CUPE 3903 wrote an open letter to the administration criticizing their actions (PDF, p.11), and compared the situation to Berkeley's Free Speech Movement in the 60s.
posted by heatherann at 9:04 PM PST - 22 comments

How much? (sun times link) So the story is we're going to have an estimated $427 billion shortfall. So what does that mean? According to this guy the deficit is more of a metaphor than something real. According to newhouse news service the deficit gets added to the national debt (and is terrifying). According to this guy the deficit is not a well defined concept Will it stimulate the economy? Increase taxes? It's too complex for me even though it's in the news a lot. $7.9 trillion in debt doesn't sound good though... I think I'll just keep blaming this guy.
posted by Smedleyman at 8:32 PM PST - 31 comments

The sexual doldrums caused by the likes of Zoloft can apparently be counteracted by drugs like Wellbutrin. If by "counteract," you mean "cause a two-hour orgasm while shopping."
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 8:21 PM PST - 53 comments

After School A documentary is being made about the rise of sexual molestation in schools by teachers. As someone who is trained as a teacher, I find this extremely shocking and disturbing.
posted by livingsanctuary at 7:43 PM PST - 27 comments

Not another top 50 ! Movie deaths.
posted by johnny7 at 7:24 PM PST - 40 comments

The end of the endless September. "America Online on Tuesday confirmed that it will stop supporting access to newsgroups." Thus ends what many labeled the greatest plague upon the Internet, the (triple posting) barbarian horde that descended upon Usenet when AOL added Usenet access for its members.

This is when Usenet returns to utility, readability and civility. Right?
posted by NortonDC at 5:19 PM PST - 53 comments

The Dictators. Even in this age of crate-digger archaeology, especially when it comes to the roots of punk rock, this band of Bronx miscreants is little known except to cognoscenti. The stream of punk most identified with The Ramones (unapologetically crude three-minute pop singles, pop culture obsessed, based around fun, what Tom Carson called "deadly serious kidding") began with these guys first three albums and lives on in the work of The Muffs, Nashville Pussy, The Supersuckers and countless others. A rock and roll treasure often overlooked.
posted by jonmc at 5:04 PM PST - 31 comments

Post Secret is a group confessional, where the site admin solicits deep, dark secrets from anyone that sends theirs in via postcard, then scans them in, and hijinks/hilarity/psychosis ensues. Kinda like grouphug, but more visual and has a bit of a barrier to entry.
posted by mathowie at 4:44 PM PST - 25 comments

Four employees fired for refusing smoking test. This month, Weyco Inc., a Michigan based company in the health care industry, has gone forward with its plan to fire any employees that smokes cigarettes, even if it's done in their own homes. This is being done primarily to save money on health care. Weyco defends its position.
posted by bobo123 at 4:35 PM PST - 147 comments

Meatpacking is the most dangerous factory job in America says Human Rights Watch. According to the New York Times, this is the first time HRW has issued a report criticizing a single industry.
posted by banjotwang at 3:41 PM PST - 21 comments

Two Johnny Carson Clips You Won't See on CNN This Week I remember seeing this (the first one) when it happened. But I must confess I missed the phrase "hang him." (via google video search Radosh.net)
posted by soyjoy at 2:49 PM PST - 105 comments

Learn to Pray
posted by Pretty_Generic at 2:38 PM PST - 21 comments

Which will freeze faster, a liter of water at 60° F or a liter of water at 80° F? Meet the Mpemba effect.
posted by BlueMetal at 2:22 PM PST - 43 comments

Are you in the market for fine art? Have you considered looking at Costco [Philly Enquirer link]? Last week, an original, authenticated Pablo Picasso sketch sold from their website for about $35,000. Currently you can purchase Mourlot edition lithographs by Modigliani and Chagall, as well as prints from the Picasso Estate Collection with a click of your mouse. Would you trust Costco for your fine art purchases?
posted by ScottUltra at 2:04 PM PST - 10 comments

Matt Cooper (no, not this Matt Cooper) is a 21-year-old political science student at the University of California at Davis. He's also running for President. In 2020.
posted by Vidiot at 11:58 AM PST - 46 comments

Photographs of London Underground Stations Taken on black and white film, then coloured in photoshop. A nice example.
posted by carter at 11:18 AM PST - 34 comments

The Human Connection Institute. With a friend, gaze at a painting. Point out what one of you perceives until the other can see it too. Take turns doing this, exploring if you begin to feel greater empathy or even the beginnings of telepathy. Are you more heartfelt and insightful together than you are alone? The art gallery of the Human Connection Project.
posted by tidecat at 11:06 AM PST - 18 comments

They’re petrifying wood in the lab next door.

I am certain they’re coming for me next.
posted by mcgraw at 10:36 AM PST - 10 comments

Not only is pop star Ashlee Simpson lip syncing and manufactured, but so are some of her fans:
"I just read about Ashlee in us weekly. Those guys at the football game were total jerks." -- mandyc19

Welcome to the world of message forum viral marketing, "street team" advertising, and corporate shills. That "fan" posting in forums about Court TV, The Smoking Gun, or shows on Fox isn't a fan at all -- just another type of spammer -- only this time employed by giant media corporations.
posted by jca at 10:24 AM PST - 86 comments

A fantastic example of old meets new, a man spends weeks crafting the perfect Christmas gift for his wife, with spectacular results. I give you the typewriter-keyboard conversion: a true labor of love. Makes me want to dig up my grandpa's old Underwood and give it a go.
posted by Igor XA at 9:06 AM PST - 27 comments

Surrational Images - A More Perfect World - The hallmark of Mutter's remarkable imagery is the distinct sense that the elements of each picture belong together, even though the combination may violate the laws of physics. Click pictures for descriptions.
posted by hypersloth at 8:38 AM PST - 16 comments

It's Australia Day! Some of the highlights this year include someone not a sportsperson being chosen as Australian of the Year and of course the Sam Kekovich lamb advertisments with such classic lines as "you long haired dole bludging types are indulging their pierced taste buds" and "the soap avoiding pot smoking hippie vegetarians may disagree with me but they can get stuffed".
posted by Talez at 8:14 AM PST - 20 comments

Castle ZZT is a site for comics.
posted by jimmy at 7:58 AM PST - 15 comments

More of our successes in spreading freedom and liberty around the world. It seems that access to broader information about the conditions existing for civilians within our proactive foreign policies endeavors lies with NGOs, who's focal points are human rights.
posted by threehundredandsixty at 7:48 AM PST - 12 comments

Nominations for 77th Annual Academy Awards: OK, so Sideways gets nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay (Adapted), Best Supporting Actor aaaand Best Supporting Actress, but Paul Giamatti--arguably the linchpin of the whole flick--gets stiffed. (Jamie Foxx, on the other hand, gets nominated twice...not that there's anything wrong with that!)

Travesty, or just an indication of an incredibly rich "Best Actor" field?
posted by LairBob at 6:25 AM PST - 152 comments

Goodbye and good riddance to William Safire. Though, yes, admittedly not good form to post a link to an Op-Ed piece, let alone several, Safire's retirement from the Times' Op-Ed pages is something of a landmark event, even to those of us who grew up reading his On Language pieces (which will continue) and did not yet know of his past as a speechwriter for Richard M. Nixon. His opinions were sometimes aggravating, and other times, infuriating, but they were always well-written. [many NY Times links]
posted by psmealey at 5:21 AM PST - 19 comments

Bambi with love.
posted by loquacious at 1:29 AM PST - 38 comments