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"Dear Mr. President-Elect, It may surprise you to learn that among the issues that will occupy much of your time in the coming years is one you barely mentioned during the campaign: food." Michael Pollan advises the next president on what he can and should do to remake the way we grow and eat our food. [Via]
posted by homunculus at 11:15 PM PST - 30 comments

Boy Tweets Girl Boy meets girl. Boy falls madly in love. Boy tweets marriage proposal. Girl accepts and suggests space pirate/ninja/zombie wedding.
posted by m2002 at 10:42 PM PST - 67 comments

A Metatalk Post about someone's birthday included a sound file that made me think of the Stock Market Slide. Not this one, but rather, this one. [more inside]
posted by Rafaelloello at 10:17 PM PST - 7 comments

A luminous dragon climbing the side of a building is almost certain to be fearsome; but, when executed properly, even a sculpture of a bunny rabbit can threaten.... Gargoyles and Grotesques. (some nsfw stonework) [more inside]
posted by Kronos_to_Earth at 10:16 PM PST - 5 comments

You can't tase me bro, no, seriously, you can't. The Thor Shield is handy for all your not getting electrocuted needs.
posted by Smedleyman at 10:14 PM PST - 31 comments

Buy the opening page to the Internet!
posted by desjardins at 8:14 PM PST - 51 comments

Many poor Haitians, driven over the edge by world rising food prices, are now eating cakes of mud, salt and shortening in order to survive. This article in the September issue of National Geographic describes how, thanks to history and other factors such as hurricanes, Haiti has lost its ability to feed itself; more than 90% of the country is deforested. The picture caption in the print version, not seen online, uses the word "clay" instead of "dirt". Bill Quigley wrote about the U.S. role in Haiti's food riots, which claimed six lives last spring.
posted by Melismata at 7:49 PM PST - 34 comments

Say 'Hebbo' to Tarvuism. Learn more at the Tarvupedia. It's SO easy to join!
posted by jack_mo at 7:39 PM PST - 21 comments

We Have Lasers!!!!!! At one point in your childhood, maybe you did too?
posted by [NOT HERMITOSIS-IST] at 7:16 PM PST - 16 comments

Meet Andy Martin, aka Anthony R. Martin-Trigona, perennial losing candidate for public office and one of the truly great vexatious litigators. [more inside]
posted by enn at 6:58 PM PST - 13 comments

The 150 Best Online Flash Games grouped according to theme: Action, Aim and Shoot, Arcade and Classic, Escape the Room, Graphical Adventures, Guitar Hero, Jewels, Logic, Multiplayer, Physics, Puzzles, Racing, Reflex, RPG, Shoot It Far, Shoot-’em-Up, Skill, Sports, Strategy, Weird. Includes a link to every game on the list, a visual and mini description and how each one is played.
posted by nickyskye at 5:34 PM PST - 20 comments

Hitmen For Destiny: a weird, hilarious webcomic. Google suggests it's virtually undiscovered, but I think it's almost at Achewood level. The art seems crude at first glance, but with a little reading the distinctive brilliance becomes apparent. The plot appears to be something to do with monsters, alternate worlds, and destiny. Key features are odd humor and some insanely detailed taxonomy of imaginary creatures. There are many high points in the already long, convoluted story, but this installment may give as good an idea as any of the flavor. [more inside]
posted by misterzoo at 4:49 PM PST - 35 comments

As of today, the truly excellent media filter & news digest Cursor.org is suspending publication. [more inside]
posted by jammy at 4:41 PM PST - 8 comments

As of October 1, 2008, the state of Texas now requires that driver's license applicants show proof of legal immigration status when getting an original, renewal, or duplicate license. For those who are not citizens or permanent residents, the license will have on its face an indication of the expiration date of legal status. [more inside]
posted by marble at 3:59 PM PST - 61 comments

The Iron Heel, published a century ago this year, is a novel by Jack London about socialist revolution in the United States. It is set mostly between 1912 and 1932, with a foreword and numerous footnotes written from the point of view of a historian who has just discovered the manuscript some 700 years later. Here is an excerpt (which is printed on the back cover of some editions) from chapter five:

"This, then, is our answer. We have no words to waste on you. When you reach out your vaunted strong hands for our palaces and purpled ease, we will show you what strength is. In roar of shell and shrapnel and in whine of machine-guns will our answer be couched. We will grind you revolutionists down under our heel, and we shall walk upon your faces. The world is ours, we are its lords, and ours it shall remain. As for the host of labor, it has been in the dirt since history began, and I read history aright. And in the dirt it shall remain so long as I and mine and those that come after us have the power. There is the word. It is the king of words--Power. Not God, not Mammon, but Power. Pour it over your tongue till it tingles with it. Power."

posted by finite at 3:17 PM PST - 31 comments

Mother's Cookies is no more.
posted by Reverend Robbie at 2:27 PM PST - 59 comments

Mailbox Art: 20 Cool and Creative Postboxes
posted by An Infinity Of Monkeys at 2:01 PM PST - 5 comments

In 1982, Steve Wozniak sank a lot of his own money into creating the US Festivals -- the first large concerts to celebrate the merging of music, technology (and money). For the second (and final) US Festival in 1983, Van Halen was given 1.5 million dollars, up front, to headline the 1983 US Festival. What did they give back to their fans? Well, about eighty-four seconds into their first song, David Lee Roth screamed, "I forgot the f@¢₭n' words!" Along with a swipe at the Clash, the set that followed remains evar a drunken classic of testosterone-fueled pop metal campiness. About 3:20 into this clip, DLR launches into his epic fail version of "God Bless the Child" -- 'nuff said.
posted by not_on_display at 2:01 PM PST - 36 comments

Notebook is a short animated film by Evelien Lohbeck. Just graduated from the St Joost Academy of Arts in the Netherlands, she is already creating wonderful animations. And Notebook has just been awarded first prize in the Netherlands Online Film Festival.
posted by ceri richard at 1:37 PM PST - 10 comments

Snoop Doggy Dogg and The Dogg Pound freestyling over Dre playing the piano. (SLYT)
posted by ignignokt at 11:43 AM PST - 33 comments

Jame's Gunn's PG Porn ('For people who like everything about porn...except the sex.') - Nailing Your Wife starring Firefly's Nathan Fillion. Interview.
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 11:37 AM PST - 38 comments

You fell asleep, watching a dvd. It's Friday, so after a long week, you decide to put in a movie and tune out the world. When you regain consciousness, you wonder if you even made it 5 minutes in.
posted by ninjew at 11:20 AM PST - 57 comments

Would you like some Narco ballards with your network software?
posted by Artw at 10:47 AM PST - 9 comments

Shark Virgin Birth! Praise Jawsus! (punchline stolen from Halcyon) Meanwhile, in Dubai, they're so rich they can focus their attention on Sammy the Shark, and a museum in Hawaii is trying to dispel fears raised by recent shark sightings with an exhibition titled "Megalodon: Largest Shark That Ever Lived". And if you always wanted a shark of your own, contact Big Al. Just remember the words of Alby Singer.
posted by wendell at 10:18 AM PST - 12 comments

Project Censored 2009 brings you 25 stories censored this past year. This essay by Amanda Witherall introduces Project Censored as well as summarizes the top 10 stories selected. [more inside]
posted by infini at 7:47 AM PST - 65 comments

Doctor assisted suicide for the terminally ill, or those in chronic pain, is an issue that some find themselves opposed to. Dan Savage, of Savage Love fame, writes about the death of his mother and the implications of religious opposition to such measures.
posted by sotonohito at 7:25 AM PST - 100 comments

Blind Muslims with guide dogs. Dogs are usually considered unclean, but one U.K. imam carried out research and determined that a dog in service to, or trained by, a person could be allowed in a mosque. [more inside]
posted by joeclark at 6:46 AM PST - 45 comments

I argue very well. Ask any of my remaining friends. I can win an argument on any topic, against any opponent. People know this and steer clear of me at parties. Often, as a sign of their great respect, they don't even invite me. You too can win arguments. Simply follow these rules.
posted by blue_beetle at 6:43 AM PST - 53 comments

Pocketful of dough - an article on where the art of, er, tipping up front can get you. Originally printed in a year 2000 edition of Gourmet. Via Juicy Tidbits.
posted by nthdegx at 6:05 AM PST - 59 comments

President Martti Ahtisaari wins the Nobel Peace Prize. A former Finnish President, an UN envoy, a social democrat, a school teacher and founder of Crisis Management Initiative has negotiated for peace in many troubled areas for three decades. Last fall and last summer CMI (without Ahtisaari's presence) called former Northern Ireland and South African militants to use their experience for finding Iraqi factions a way out of bloodshed. A plan for Kosovo. Negotiations ending 30-year conflict in Aceh, Indonesia. Negotiating Namibia independence. Got conflict? Mr. Ahtisaari is your man.
posted by Free word order! at 4:30 AM PST - 16 comments

Credit Default Swaps (CDS) are derivative instruments providing the purchaser with protection against default on an underlying financial asset. When Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac technically defaulted on September 7th there was much speculation that the CDS market would collapse as a result of protection being invoked on $1.4 trillion dollars worth of debt. On October 6th these derivative contracts settled, and the CDS market didn't collapse with recovery rates of 92% being observed. Today CDS contracts protecting against the default of Lehman Brothers settle. The problem? Because industry lacks a central clearinghouse for these derivatives, nobody is really sure how many CDS contracts were written either by Lehman or by other banks providing protection against a Lehman default. Next on the list are CDS' covering Washington Mutual, which are due to settle October 23rd.

Meanwhile efforts to create a clearing house continue, as some folks speculate that the settlement of Credit Default Swaps is a major reason why banks are hoarding cash.
posted by Mutant at 2:32 AM PST - 155 comments

Remember the days of ACME products and cans that simply said BEER? Product placement in television and film is so commonplace that "product integration" is where the money is now. Some writers are getting very good at it while others wonder if it will be possible to survive without it.
posted by kyleg at 12:58 AM PST - 43 comments