October 14, 2007

Who or what shot first?

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 by CrunchyFrog at 11:05 PM PST - 71 comments

Cats and War

What Cats Know About War. A reporter adopts cats to reconnect with life amid unremitting death. [Via linkfilter.] [more inside]
posted by homunculus at 9:35 PM PST - 30 comments

Windshield cowboy!

Like a windshield cowboy ... never ridden on a house says the guy from Mexico ... Vincente Fox also says Bush is "quite simply the cockiest guy I have ever met in my life". Interestingly though, around the world this story is reported differently. In India he is "petrified of horses", while Germany just says he's scared. It seems most American news just covers it as "doesn't like horses". As the real cowboys I grew up with would say "all hat, no horse".
posted by Kickstart70 at 9:30 PM PST - 39 comments

Disrespectful Cockalorum

Blackburn makes manifest a propensity for turgid language. Not content with foisting “cockalorum” (meaning, boastful talk), “froward” (willfully disobedient) and “mordaciously” (bitingly) on the reader, he may be the first judge to use both “contumelious” (scornful) and “contumacious” (pigheaded) in the same opinion. Judge Robert E. Blackburn's ruling [pdf] granting a motion for a new trial based on attorney misconduct is an interesting read for those who enjoy the use of uncommon, flowery and "big" words. [more inside]
posted by amyms at 8:46 PM PST - 14 comments

Through a glass . . . lovely

A day by day account of the progress of the manufacturing of 12 Glass Windscreen panels by artist Mario Muller. The pieces are a commission by the MTA Arts in Transit program for Kingsbridge Road station in the Bronx. The work is being done at Franz Mayer of Munich in Germany. More on the artist here and here.
posted by pt68 at 7:21 PM PST - 6 comments

Protest Songs

So are you ready to march on Washington to protest in song? Here are some lyrics. Some examples from the 60's. Something sweet from Bob Dylan. Speaking of Zimmermans, here's Roy's take on Iraq. [more inside]
posted by snsranch at 5:55 PM PST - 33 comments

Things that go bump in the night.

Cinema Fiction vs. Physics Reality (PDF -- HTML version without addendum here) Two physicists examine certain features of popular myths regarding ghosts, vampires, and zombies as they appear in film and folklore. See also Real Zombies (audio) on the science of zombiefication. Also of interest are Psychological significance of Immortal beings (audio) and Blood Fighting: Dawn of the Robots and Zombies (video), which delve into the prominence of vampires, zombies and other things that go bump in the night in popular culture. Not to your liking? Well, check out some classic (and some not-so-classic) horror tales inside. [more inside]
posted by cog_nate at 2:23 PM PST - 32 comments

Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd. He served a dark and a vengeful God!

Quick, before Tim Burton's "re-imagining dark gems of the 1970s" spree continues with the film version that will obliterate all recollection of the original musical thriller's style! Check out 1982's Emmy-winning televised performance of Sweeney Todd, with George Hearn and the inimitable Angela Lansbury. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15. Or, just skip to the highlights, A Little Priest, Epiphany. Also, check out the style of the inventive, minimalist revival or read the original penny dreadful!
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 1:19 PM PST - 42 comments

Mysterious Ice Circles

Mysterious ice circles are large rotating ice disks on ice covered rivers or other bodies of water. Their origin and nature is controversial. Perhaps they are related to UFO's or something more prosaic, like pancake ice.
posted by Tube at 1:12 PM PST - 35 comments

Pork Flies (Sort Of)

So You Think The V-22 Is Ridiculous? [previously] Let me present you its dumb brother, the DuPont Aerospace DP-2. (No relation to the chemical conglomerate). [more inside]
posted by Skeptic at 10:50 AM PST - 18 comments

The smell of sweat turns me on.

"Stars and Losers" and "Claustrophobic Me," two short stories by Pedro Juan Gutiérrez (author of Dirty Havana Trilogy and often called the Caribbean Bukowski), Cuban writer of the dirty realism style.
posted by John of Michigan at 10:34 AM PST - 5 comments

It's Sunday. So have Optimus Prime phone your friends.

Have Optimus Prime phone your friends.
posted by patr1ck at 9:02 AM PST - 32 comments

Online portfolio of Andrew Bell

drawnline: The commercial and personal work of Andrew Bell.
posted by gwint at 7:33 AM PST - 4 comments

Iraq was just the beginning.

Iraq was just the beginning. According to retired General Wesley Clark, a top-secret memo detailed a plan for “taking out” seven countries in five years, ending with Iran. [more inside]
posted by FeldBum at 12:43 AM PST - 129 comments

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