For Better or For Worse has become a hybrid. Lynn Johnston has been making some changes to FBOFW gearing up for the time when the characters will stop aging in the strip. Unlike most comics which are frozen in time, the characters in For Better or For Worse have gotten older, made changes in their lives, fallen in love, and had children. Some people aren't so happy with this fundamental change in the strip. However, FBOFW is no stranger to controversy. Michael, the oldest child of the Patterson family, had a gay friend who came out in the strip prompting some papers to run completely different strips on the days the homosexuality issue was mentioned. In recent years, however, the internet has been abuzz over the issue of middle child Elizabeth's love life. Thankfully we can read all about it from youngest child April's perspective. (Previously)
posted to MetaFilter by josher71 at 6:46 AM on October 27, 2007 (84 comments)

Dumbening.com: Measuring the Dumbening of America for Like 20 Years. With Special Reports: God Clarifies Stance on Radical Islam, Why Children are Stupid, The Elderly: Pros and Cons, Ten Reasons to Bomb Denmark and Guest Columnist Pat Robertson offers This Week in God's Wrath. Fake news not your thing? Then check out Stupid Children, a humor blog with links to real news stories of people behaving stupidly (last post is from 2006, so maybe people have gotten smarter since then). This rash of humor sites is all well and good you say, but some pretty serious people have dared ask: "Is our children learning?" Columnist Mark Morford [SF Gate] responds with a resounding NO: American Kids are Dumber that Dirt. Though the reaction from the reddit crowd has been swift and severe.
posted to MetaFilter by psmealey at 4:51 AM on October 27, 2007 (59 comments)

Phonetics for beginners: play around with phonemes, start with the chart.
posted to MetaFilter by Lezzles at 12:29 AM on October 23, 2007 (27 comments)

War and Deliverance [Original format] How "an old movie may offer perspective on American attitudes behind the invasion of Iraq." By Christopher Dickey, son of the man who wrote the novel Deliverance.
posted to MetaFilter by Abiezer at 6:42 PM on October 22, 2007 (17 comments)

56 American roller coasters from the front seat
posted to MetaFilter by carsonb at 4:19 PM on October 21, 2007 (44 comments)

My roommate is such a dick! (portions probably nsfw)
posted to MetaFilter by mr_crash_davis at 6:58 PM on October 16, 2007 (27 comments)

Melba Jackson has long been the terror of local Christian radio hosts and various sports programs. Her contributions have tickled many a listener, wondering exactly who this elderly woman from a rural area is, exactly. Turns out she isn't a she at all, but a very talented and shy young man by the name of Brother Russell.
posted to MetaFilter by Unicorn on the cob at 12:40 PM on October 16, 2007 (26 comments)

The debate rages on -- who really did it? Did Han shoot first? Did Greedo shoot first? Perhaps Greedo really really shot first. Or maybe the first shooter was something different altogether.
posted to MetaFilter by CrunchyFrog at 11:05 PM on October 14, 2007 (68 comments)

picurls, picture buzz, image aggregator.
posted to MetaFilter by nickyskye at 9:46 AM on October 15, 2007 (2 comments)

Karl Marx' 'Capital' in Lithographs by Hugo Gellert.
via The Early Days of a Better Nation.
posted to MetaFilter by thatwhichfalls at 7:18 AM on October 12, 2007 (20 comments)

Spot the Five Differences. It is fun. [flash]
posted to MetaFilter by brain_drain at 12:06 PM on October 10, 2007 (87 comments)

Why We Curse. An article by Steven Pinker, exploring the roots of modern "dirty words" and the psychohistory of how and why we use the expletives we use.
posted to MetaFilter by BeerFilter at 3:43 PM on October 10, 2007 (70 comments)

Is the dancer spinning clockwise or counterclockwise? An optical illusion.
posted to MetaFilter by painquale at 8:00 PM on October 8, 2007 (130 comments)

The Victoria Regina Tarot, assembled from steel and wood engravings from nineteenth-century illustrations, now has an online reading generator with several original spreads.
posted to MetaFilter by hermitosis at 8:02 PM on October 8, 2007 (29 comments)

Sam Harris critiques contemporary atheism. Harris, best known for Atheist tracts "Letter to a Christian Nation" and "The End of Faith," calls for a more nuanced, modest atheism rationality.
posted to MetaFilter by klangklangston at 11:54 AM on October 3, 2007 (155 comments)

John Cage's 4'33" has been discussed previously on MeFi, but you might've missed the full orchestral version.
posted to MetaFilter by flapjax at midnite at 6:03 PM on September 22, 2007 (119 comments)

David Dunlop is a landscape painter. This is the first episode of his new PBS show, Landscapes Through Time, on American Impressionism. (Parts 1, 2, 3)
posted to MetaFilter by anotherpanacea at 5:08 PM on September 16, 2007 (3 comments)

The Official Marvel Character Bios will clue you in on Marvel characters from the obscure to the world famous. To find out about the really, really obscure you have to visit The Appendix to The Handbook of the Marvel Universe, where you can learn about such characters as Glowworm (a.k.a. Race Killer), Thunderhoof (part of Force Four) and human/amoeba hybrid Half-Man.
posted to MetaFilter by Kattullus at 3:50 PM on September 15, 2007 (56 comments)

Imaging a Shattering Earth: Contemporary Photography and the Environmental Debate.
posted to MetaFilter by homunculus at 4:10 PM on September 15, 2007 (13 comments)

CBC Television's sitcom Little House on the Mosque, starring Carlo Rota of 24, has been mentioned before on the blue and grey. Reviews have actually been pretty positive, the ratings have been good, and now you can decide for yourself whether the "brou-ha-ha" was worth it (all 8 episodes linked inside). Don't think a sitcom can possibly capture Muslim life accurately? Well, maybe Morgan Spurlock's 30 Days can do a better job for you. It's pretty fascinating viewing, either way.
posted to MetaFilter by miss lynnster at 7:20 PM on September 15, 2007 (29 comments)

If piss were oil, 10 Midwood would be Saudi Arabia. It is a poorly managed, under-maintained, out of date, dirty, smelly bunker which makes the worst college dorm seem like the Governor's Mansion. [language and images may be nsfw]
posted to MetaFilter by brain_drain at 8:25 AM on September 6, 2007 (43 comments)

The 25 Best Pop Song Opening Lyrics, like EVER - a spinner.com 'hit list', complete with wry commentary and abruptly cut-off audio clips. Bonus: 25 more, suggested by people who don't work for the webside.
posted to MetaFilter by wendell at 7:30 PM on September 6, 2007 (237 comments)

Should I use blackface on my blog? A flowchart.
posted to MetaFilter by klangklangston at 10:57 PM on September 4, 2007 (44 comments)

We've discussed Simple English Wikipedia, and descriptions of other languages in English, but have you tried reading wikipedia in Scots? You asked if Scots is a language? How about any of the other 253 languages of Wikipedia?
posted to MetaFilter by jacalata at 7:59 AM on September 5, 2007 (43 comments)

DearLeaderFilter: We had Turkmenbashi and his enlightened laws , we heard Karl Rove cry of appreciation when watching the fantastic propaganda of the most precious dear leader Kim Jong Il and elder people will remember a 2 meters tall black dictator Idi Amin Dada as one of the weirdest and most paranoid. But did you know about Mswati III of Swaziland, the second of 210 sons of the elderly King Sobhuza II ? Every year he gets to check out 40000 bare breasted, machete wielding maidens and eventually pick a new wife.
posted to MetaFilter by elpapacito at 4:34 PM on September 2, 2007 (23 comments)

In the 1890s, an unknown woman was found drowned in the Seine. Known as the l'Inconnue de la Seine, her death mask became a fixture in the homes of artists and writers, and her look the ideal of the age. Many have speculated on her identity, and she has inspired a long list of artistic works by Nabokov, Rilke, Man Ray, and others. She has since become the "most kissed girl in the world" thanks to the Norwegian toymaker that used her mask to create Resusci Anne, the standard CPR doll.
posted to MetaFilter by blahblahblah at 9:43 AM on August 21, 2007 (56 comments)

Urban Scout. Sincere crusader for sustainable living or poseur hipster douchebag? [last link is google video]
posted to MetaFilter by dersins at 5:03 PM on September 1, 2007 (175 comments)

In God we doubt.

This is not an intellectual game. Even if we know what is true – and we don’t – you cannot reduce life to a set of provable realities. Humanity is too complex for that. In the end, it comes down to whether the world would be a better place without religion; and that is a matter of judgment, not certainty.

posted to MetaFilter by veedubya at 4:15 AM on September 2, 2007 (238 comments)

An insurance company's cute little flash application tells you how long you're going to live. [retrofilter]
posted to MetaFilter by Saucy Intruder at 12:36 PM on September 1, 2007 (99 comments)

The Concert in Central Park. On September 19, 1981, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel played these songs in a free concert for over 500,000 people: Mrs. Robinson, Homeward Bound, America, Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard, Scarborough Fair, April Come She Will, Wake Up Little Susie, Still Crazy After All These Years, American Tune, Late in the Evening, Slip Slidin' Away, A Heart in New York, The Late Great Johnny Ace, Kodachrome/Maybellene, Bridge Over Troubled Water, 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover, The Boxer, Old Friends, Bookends, The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy), The Sound of Silence, and an encore of Late in the Evening. [more inside]
posted to MetaFilter by kirkaracha at 9:46 AM on September 1, 2007 (20 comments)

The Greatest Rock & Roll Show On Earth: Jethro Tull { Song For Jeffrey } The Who { A Quick One While He's Away } Taj Mahal { Checkin' Up On My Baby, Leaving Trunk, Corrina, Ain't That A Lot Of Love } Marianne Faithfull { Something Better } clowns ☻ The Dirty Mac John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Keith Richards & Mitch Mitchell { Yer Blues [2nd take] } Yoko Ono with Ivry Gitlis & The Dirty Mac { Whole Lotta Yoko } The Rolling Stones { Jumpin' Jack Flash, No Expectations, You Can't Always Get What You Want, Sympathy For The Devil [previously] } (1968)
posted to MetaFilter by Poolio at 2:55 AM on September 1, 2007 (39 comments)

The Eight Strangest Communites On the Internet. (via)
posted to MetaFilter by nuclear_soup at 7:59 AM on August 31, 2007 (72 comments)

T.S. Eliot reads the The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, accompanied by Portishead.
posted to MetaFilter by monju_bosatsu at 8:35 AM on August 30, 2007 (55 comments)

No fucking way is this bearable on MeFi.
posted to MetaTalk by Civil_Disobedient at 10:03 AM on February 10, 2007 (186 comments)

"It so often happens that I receive mail - well-intended but totally useless - by amateur physicists who believe to have solved the world. They believe this, only because they understand totally nothing about the real way problems are solved in Modern Physics...It should be possible, these days, to collect all knowledge you need from the internet. Problem then is, there is so much junk on the internet... I know exactly what should be taught to the beginning student...I can tell you of my own experiences. It helped me all the way to earn a Nobel Prize. But I didn't have internet. I am going to try to be your teacher. It is a formidable task."
posted to MetaFilter by vacapinta at 4:22 PM on August 29, 2007 (47 comments)

'Hey, We're Back' is a new podcast by Jonathan Katz, of Dr. Katz. Recommended for those who like low-key humor and Katz's soothing voice.
posted to MetaFilter by agropyron at 10:32 PM on August 28, 2007 (12 comments)

This PBS documentary about Anti-Americanism (a hate/love relationship) examines the complicated mixture of envy, pride, admiration, and cultural misunderstanding that characterizes european views. This documentary covers only France, Britain and Poland. Is there comparable Anti-Europeanism similar to Anti-Americanism? Or maybe it's all down to the evil liberal european media [Part 2]?!
posted to MetaFilter by homodigitalis at 2:03 PM on August 28, 2007 (89 comments)

"I don't know anyone who calls himself that" Bob Dylan insulted in Australia 20 years ago. It's a wonder he still does interviews at all, and he tours down under regularly. He's resiient (Part 2 of a double YouTube link).
posted to MetaFilter by St Urbain's Horseman at 9:54 PM on August 27, 2007 (25 comments)

Dead Road - Museum of Communism in the Open. "It was one of the most ambitious projects of the Stalin era, known as the 'railway of bones'. At least 10 people a day died during the four years of its construction [actually 1947-1953], but unlike most of Uncle Joe's grand designs it was never completed and now sits unfinished in the tundra, an icy road to nowhere." The transpolar railway was built by labour camps^ 501 and 503 and construction was stopped after the amnesty following Stalin's death in 1953; 800km, about half, was built. Some sections are currently in operation, but much is abandoned: depot and locomotives in Dolgoe, Dolgoe itself, labour camps, more spectacular decay. (Previously: Norilsk, which was supposed to see an extension of the line.)
posted to MetaFilter by parudox at 11:36 PM on August 27, 2007 (13 comments)

A Pile of Index Cards. A somewhat byzantine way to organize your life using index cards.
posted to MetaFilter by chunking express at 8:09 AM on August 27, 2007 (83 comments)

The Great Iraq Swindle: How Bush Allowed an Army of For-Profit Contractors to Invade the U.S. Treasury
posted to MetaFilter by mr_crash_davis at 11:00 AM on August 26, 2007 (78 comments)

Hand drawn Tarot Cards created by a Boris Kobe, a prisoner at Allach Concentration Camp, a sub-camp of Dachau. Each card depcits an aspect of life in the camp - click each image for high-res versions.
posted to MetaFilter by jonson at 8:01 AM on August 25, 2007 (34 comments)

Tasty
6/4 blues: Carlos Santana/Buddy Guy duo. Jeff Beck "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat/Brush With the Blues" at the Udo Music Festival '06. Roy Buchanan "Sweet Dreams" at the Rockpalast and here trying out a Fritz Bros. custom guitar.
posted to MetaFilter by sluglicker at 8:48 AM on August 14, 2007 (9 comments)

Attack of the Giant Negroes.
posted to MetaFilter by serazin at 12:09 AM on August 13, 2007 (34 comments)

Episode one of controversial evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins' new series Enemies of Reason premieres on Channel 4 tonight. Here's a list of topics.
posted to MetaFilter by chuckdarwin at 4:42 AM on August 13, 2007 (309 comments)

In Scenes from an Overrated Career, film critic Jonathan Rosenbaum writes a rare New York Times op-ed arguing that the work of recently deceased director Ingmar Bergman is overvalued compared to Carl Theodor Dreyer and Robert Bresson. Both Roger Ebert and David Bordwell respond to Rosenbaum's takedown of Bergman, while Rosenbaum writes a brief eulogy blog post on Bergman. Meanwhile, another blogger discusses how Antonioni and Bergman hated each other despite recent obits that have paired them together.
posted to MetaFilter by jonp72 at 5:05 PM on August 13, 2007 (23 comments)

Karl Rove Resigns. The man known as “Bush's Brain” and whom Frontline called “The Architect” will leave office at the end of August.
posted to MetaFilter by Ethereal Bligh at 4:31 AM on August 13, 2007 (209 comments)

DayFilter: Everyone from T-Bone Walker, The Mamas & the Papas, The Carpenters, Jimmy Buffett, Fleetwood Mac, The Neighborhoods, The Boomtown Rats, New Order, Duran Duran, The Bangles, Snow, Pulp, Rialto, Alan Jackson, Tegan and Sara, to Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, has a song about Monday... but only Ohio's best newscast - 19 Action News – has Carl Monday, bitch! [closed]
posted to MetaFilter by Poolio at 6:31 AM on August 13, 2007 (25 comments)

Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers is a beta release of the Library of Congress/National Endowment for the Humanities partnership project, the (previously mentioned) National Digital Newspaper Program. In its current state, Chronicling America allows users to search for and read newspaper pages from 36 newspapers published between 1900 and 1910, and search for information on American newspapers published between 1690 and present day.
posted to MetaFilter by cog_nate at 2:05 PM on August 13, 2007 (9 comments)

The Pardoner's Tale - adapted to rap by Baba Brinkman, who has been rapping Chaucer tales for a few years now. He's also released The Rap Canterbury Tales, a book that presents raps side by side with Chaucer's original Middle English. Both video and book are illustrated graffiti-style by his brother Erik. Discussed in a previous post by fatllama on hip hop classics.
posted to MetaFilter by madamjujujive at 12:33 AM on August 12, 2007 (18 comments)