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Author Michael Chabon makes a fair amount of his work available on the web. In addition to presenting pieces originally published elsewhere, he offers up a treatment for the original X-Men movie FOX asked him to write, a couple of television projects that never made the airwaves, as well as the usual I have a website and this is what I like . Something to read since so few Metafites own televisions...
posted by herc at 11:32 PM PST - 12 comments

Like Slate’s International Papers, the US Department of State collects foreign media reaction to a policy or event. Instead of blatant propagandizing (like some other State Department pages) there is simply a lot of useful translation and short descriptions of the newspapers.
posted by raaka at 11:00 PM PST - 6 comments

venetian carnival masks
posted by crunchland at 9:24 PM PST - 12 comments

Say goodbye to winter and welcome spring with a Russian-style Mardis Gras celebration of Maslenitsa-Pancake Day. Maslenitsa is an ancient pagan weeklong Slavic holiday held before the beginning of the Christian season of Lent. Pancakes, the traditional food eaten during this time, are round and hot, representing the sun. "Fat is the key word for Maslenitsa," said Valentina Bakhtina. It is a sort of Mardi Gras without the costumes and with a lot of butter. The central thing is to drink, be merry, and eat - pancakes and more pancakes.
posted by stbalbach at 8:43 PM PST - 4 comments

Nader takes on the SEC, will a campaign be next? Bit by bit, Ralph Nader does what he does best, annoying those who abuse power. This last year, he has kept with advocacy that is in parallel with smart campaign strategy and the creation of the SEC watchdog group is an example of that. The Greens are still debating him in the forums, wondering if he is still their guy. Maybe they should be asking if he's OUR guy?
posted by StormBear at 8:17 PM PST - 4 comments

I think I know why he's not talking. According to this story in the Asia Times, recently capture al-Qaeda operative Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was killed...over a year ago? [via the memory hole, more inside]
posted by mcsweetie at 7:54 PM PST - 34 comments

The Chicago River was essentially the city of Chicago's cesspool until the construction of the Chicago Ship & Sanitary Canal, which connected the Chicago River to the Mississippi Basin in 1900. Now there's serious talk of intentionally returning a section of the river to a cesspool-like state, by dumping untreated sewage and (possibly) toxic chemicals into the river. The purpose: to prevent invasive species such as the Asian Carp and the Round Goby from using this connection to cross between the Great Lakes and Mississippi basins. Is it ever possible to avoid unintended consequences in environmental engineering? And is it necessary to "go nuclear", so to speak, to try to correct them?
[Second link RealAudio; transcript here.]
posted by Johnny Assay at 7:21 PM PST - 9 comments

Pink Bunny’s LiveJournal Pink Bunny is a character in a film beginning principal photography this month, Crypto-Candida. If she isn’t real, how can her LiveJournal be?
posted by joeclark at 6:43 PM PST - 2 comments

Pre-cinema devices & diversions - before film, multimedia amusements ranged from zoetropes and magic lantern shows to praxinoscopes and kinetescopes. Whether you're a film buff or a photographer or simply just prone to nostalgia for a day when the world seemed less jaded, you will love this site - take the time to take the tour.
posted by madamjujujive at 5:21 PM PST - 12 comments

It's an mp3 player! It's an FM radio broadcast trasmitter! It's a dessert topping. It's a floor wax you cows! Whatever it is, the Neuros handheld "digital audio computer" puts the power of broacasting your mp3 collection (and soon your OggVorbis files) to any FM radio near you. What will Hilary Rosen do?
posted by WolfDaddy at 2:41 PM PST - 22 comments

Jesus, fix our taxes! A professor is criticizing Alabama's tax system with Bible verses in tow. Some are saying it just might work, and others are calling it baptised Marxism. Fat Tuesday indeed!
posted by yeahyeahyeahwhoo at 2:23 PM PST - 6 comments

So you've already made fire without matches. How about making fire with a block of ice? Once you've got your fire roaring, it might be time to tan a fox or build your Asiatic Composite Bow. It's all about getting primitive.
posted by gwint at 1:56 PM PST - 14 comments

Governing by The Book? While reading this column from Nicholas Kristof (NY Times, reg. required), I was struck by the following quote: "President Bush has said that he doesn't believe in evolution (he thinks the jury is still out). President Ronald Reagan felt the same way, and such views are typically American." Lots more info here, including stats that 46% of Americans consider themselves "Evangelical" or "Born Again" Christians, and that more than twice as many Americans believe in a red guy with a pitchfork than natural selection. I have no doubt that me-fites will have much to gripe about here, but my question is this: Do a majority of Americans want a Christian government? How far away are they from getting it?
posted by Gilbert at 12:18 PM PST - 54 comments

Five lines combine to define thine. [via CandidColors]
posted by pedantic at 11:44 AM PST - 9 comments

Margaret Muller was stabbed to death early last month, while jogging in London's Victoria Park. An American studying at the Slade School of Fine Art, her murder launched the largest crime scene reconstruction in the Metropolitan Police's history.
posted by steef at 11:04 AM PST - 7 comments

Hints of a secret city beneath Tokyo Japanese foreign correspondent Shun Akiba says that after examining various maps of Tokyo, and finding large inconsistences, he has found evidence of a huge network of tunnels beneath the city of Tokyo. A large underground city beneath an aboveground one is not unheard of, as Beijing has this one, but the odd part is, (assuming this story is true,) is that Shun says there has been a coverup and a "...conspiracy to silence [me]," with officials being "...defensive and noncooperative..."
posted by Snyder at 9:56 AM PST - 30 comments

An American Visits the DMZ. With the rising tensions on the Korean border, it seems like a good time to get a first hand account on the situation. Insightful observations like, so I went into North Korea. It was a lot like South Korea, maybe colder. And there were more fat Canadians than I expected, especially just after a famine. While you're at his site, don't miss Tim Hoo is a Genius and Ask not for whom The Bell™ tolls.
posted by jonah at 9:13 AM PST - 24 comments

Spinning the Environment
One section of the memorandum, "Winning the Global Warming Debate," asserts that many voters believe there is a lack of consensus about global warming among scientists. "Should the public come to believe that the scientific issues are settled, their views about global warming will change accordingly," it says. "Therefore you need to continue to make the lack of scientific certainty a primary issue." Among the ways to "challenge the science," the memorandum says, is to "be even more active in recruiting experts who are sympathetic to your view and much more active in making them part of your message" because "people are more willing to trust scientists than politicians."

So much for science based decisions regarding the fouling of our nest. Sounds Green = Is Green in the bizarro world of spin.
posted by nofundy at 9:06 AM PST - 35 comments

The Rainman game. It's Friday somewhere, right?
posted by LittleMissCranky at 7:25 AM PST - 19 comments

MetaFilter in the Ruins: gentle ribbing, vicious attack, cautionary tale, or dead-on satire? And just how quickly can we get this thread to devolve into a parody of itself?
posted by GreyWingnut at 7:16 AM PST - 76 comments

An "insanely great" solution to MP3 piracy that users AND the recording industry will accept? While still only a rumor, Apple Computer may be developing a service in conjunction with all major recording studios to permit easy, inexpensive downloading of music through Apple's famed 'iTunes' music cataloging/burning software. Knowing Apple's penchant for ease-of-use and clean, solid design (combined with some hard-knuckle Steve Jobs negotiations with the recording industry), could a $.99 per song (or similar) service take off and bring legitimacy to downloaded music and acceptance from both the industry and users? If true, it's also good to see the consumer electronics industry taking some initiative and responsibility to provide solutions - not blame and accusations.
posted by tgrundke at 7:12 AM PST - 61 comments

184 Cantilevered Aluminum Benches and 70 Maple Trees make up the memorial at the Pentagon for September 11. I like its solitude, its stillness. What do you think?
posted by tommyspoon at 6:09 AM PST - 23 comments

Dr Pepper astroturf blog shows that the marketers are coming to blogland. What to do? AnilDash suggest that we create a new format.. TNL follows with a first pass at a fulll disclosure that still leaves too much open. What should we do to fight the marketers when they invade our turf?
posted by Adman at 5:20 AM PST - 38 comments

Posters of Toei Yakuza Movies.
posted by hama7 at 4:12 AM PST - 4 comments

So Farewell Then, Cool And Strange Music... Thanks for the weirdness on the way out. I guess. What's the most unsettling, pseudo-cheery music you've ever heard? What is it about music, that it can be so sinister and funny at the same time? [ Via Portage.]
posted by MiguelCardoso at 1:05 AM PST - 17 comments

It's finally here. You're certainly familiar with the festivals in New Orleans and Rio, but what about Haiti, Germany, and Watertown, Tennesee? Also called Shrove Tuesday, Mardi Gras has ancient origins with links back to Lupercalia and other pre-Christian celebrations. Carnival translates as "farewell to the flesh," which speaks to the surrender of beloved things during the season of Lent.
So, what will you do for beads, babe?
posted by moonbird at 12:19 AM PST - 9 comments