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Bobby Fuller was a Texas based rock and roll singer best known for the immortal rebel anthem "I Fought The Law,". Considered by many to be the heir to Buddy Holly as the king of Texas Rock, he built on Holly's style with songs like the aforementioned "...Law," "Jenny Lee," "Love's Made A Fool Of You," and the 2 1/2 minute masterpiece "Let Her Dance." And then it ended, at age 22, in very weird circumstances. Over the years, interest in Fuller and his work has ebbed and flowed, and plenty of archival material surfaced, but the mystery of his death remains unsolved, although many have speculated. Ann odd end for a footnote character in rick history, but who was bound for more
posted by jonmc at 8:23 PM PST - 16 comments

Fools for Communism: "the world’s final redoubt of communism is not Havana or Pyongyang but American college campuses. 'The nostalgic afterlife of communism in the United States has outlived most of the real Communist regimes around the world....A sizable cadre of American intellectuals now openly applaud and apologize for one of the bloodiest ideologies of human history, and instead of being treated as pariahs, they hold distinguished positions in American higher education and cultural life.'" Here's also History News Network's interview with the authors of "In Denial: Historians, Communists and Espionage": "The facts of history that they [communist sympathizers] got wrong can be, in their view, rationalized, redefined, minimized, or otherwise set aside in service to the idealized future they seek. Many have learned no lessons from the failure of communism; they will ardently pursue the same goals by the same means, albeit under new names."
posted by 111 at 5:26 PM PST - 127 comments

"We're Asian and Pacific Islander Americans 'living on the rim,' where our diverse cultures and the everyday American lifestyle become one...Whether we're sipping green tea or enjoying a Big Mac® sandwich, we're helping make the magic mix called America become even richer. And McDonald's is right there with us, everyday!" Learn more at i-am-asian.com
posted by punishinglemur at 3:57 PM PST - 22 comments

DR: So much to confess. I have a sinking feeling those responsible will never speak to this man.
posted by dfowler at 12:54 PM PST - 8 comments

If you can't get enough Sith-on-Sith sexy slashfiction action, you could check out the entire category of such work, broken down to what types of character interaction takes place and who is involved. It's just a tiny sliver of the work indexed by The Slash Page Database Project. Oh, the creativity of sexless nerds...
posted by mathowie at 12:39 PM PST - 54 comments

Warning: this is possibly the worst story ever told. Ever wanted to know what it's like to have a beef tapeworm? (Fun fact: they're the kind that fills your whole intestinal tract!) A storyteller on The Fray helpfully clues us in to the experience of living with, and eventually destroying, his li'l parasite buddy. Don't read it if you don't want to wish for death at the end. (Blessedly, there are no photographs, though there are some toon-like illustrations.) Via Boing Boing.
posted by logovisual at 11:29 AM PST - 40 comments

You too can apply to become a private interrogater in Baghdad! [Via Randi Rhodes on Air America]

Assists the interrogation support program team lead to increase the effectiveness of dealing with Detainees, Persons of Interest, and Prisoners of War (POWs) that are in the custody of US/Coalition Forces...
posted by moonbird at 10:35 AM PST - 44 comments

AncientScripts.com : discover introductions to more than 70 ancient and modern writing systems, from LinearB to hPhags-pa to Cherokee. View languages by type, family, or region. Many links to further reading on each subject, plus other goodies.
posted by falconred at 10:34 AM PST - 3 comments

A RAID array of floppy disks Because you can.
posted by Mwongozi at 10:10 AM PST - 5 comments

Gode Cookery: Medieval & Renaissance food & cookery, and more.
posted by hama7 at 9:32 AM PST - 8 comments

Microscopic fragments of plastic are a "major pollutant", floating in the ocean, settling on seabeds, and washing up onshore - with unknown consequences for marine ecosystems, according to a new study. "We've found this microscopic plastic material at all of the sites we've examined," [lead researcher] Dr Richard C Thompson [of University of Plymouth, UK] said. "Interestingly, the abundance is reasonably consistent. So, it suggests to us that the problem is really quite ubiquitous."
posted by mcgraw at 9:30 AM PST - 15 comments

Hey, Hey, 16K! What does that get you today? Perhaps the best bit of nerd nostalgia since the NESBuckle? Catchy song, dodgy animation, and the disembodied floating head of Clive Sinclair... what more could you ask for? Other than your old C64 back... [via AccordionGuy]
posted by krunk at 9:20 AM PST - 8 comments

The Brood is Back. No, not that Brood. This brood.
posted by grabbingsand at 8:54 AM PST - 14 comments

The great studio drummer Steve Gadd is of the most important musicians of the 1970's. Gadd brought bassist Tony Levin (Buddy Rich, Paul Simon, John Lennon, Peter Gabriel, King Crimson) into the business in New York 30 years ago, and that alone is enough to secure a place in history. You may remember his unforgettable groove on "50 Ways To Leave Your Lover", one of many brilliant contributions Gadd made to classics of the 70's pop charts
posted by crunchburger at 12:13 AM PST - 30 comments