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The World Summit on Sustainable Development, aka "Earth Summit II," will start soon in Johannesburg, ten years after the Rio Earth Summit. Have things improved at all in the last ten years? While there are some reasons to be optimistic, the data isn't cheerful. Our climate is growing unstable; tens of millions are dying or likely to die, and hundreds of millions more likely to be made refugees, because of environmental pollution and degraded ecosystems; and half the plants and animals on the planet seem headed for extinction over the next century. In short, things are grim. What steps, big or small, are you taking to do your part for the environment?
posted by AlexSteffen at 11:52 PM PST - 30 comments

The war on drugs claims forest as casualty. A forest fire that burned out of control for almost two weeks and devastated over 50,000 acres near San Diego was caused by a helicopter looking for pot farms, a California Department of Forestry investigation has concluded. [link via disinfo]
posted by drezdn at 7:39 PM PST - 33 comments

You have become a nation of monsters, America. Hypocrites. Murderers. Fools. A letter by a Canadian published in the Baltimore Chronicle to all Americans. Is this merely displaced anger; a worthless rant, or does this feeling come from a more real problem?
posted by Hall at 7:19 PM PST - 145 comments

Is there any need for a Men's Movement?
Or is the struggling existence of such organisations, and the sporadic publishing of Achilles Heel magazine, for example, evidence that organised groups and 'movements' for men are redundant? Maybe it's evidence that 'men's' needs are still under rated and unsatisfied, and that we don't focus on our needs because we are working too hard? [More inside] >>>
posted by dash_slot- at 6:17 PM PST - 22 comments

Is The Cult Of Designer Cultures And Cute Primitivism Keeping The Third World Back? In a brief but pointed book review, Raymond Tallis asks whether "the ideology of culture [has] replaced patriotism as the last refuge of a scoundrel". Can excessive cultural relativism and respect for pre-industrial cultures have the perverse effect of maintaining and indeed reinforcing the conservative, National Geographic/Discovery Channel/geopolitical statu quo?
posted by MiguelCardoso at 6:08 PM PST - 46 comments

More conjoined twins. Here's hoping they don't get abducted. NY Times link.
posted by swift at 4:22 PM PST - 13 comments

Tick Tock Bang (script) (from CBC's Ideas) (from 1999) is an enjoyable way to spend 45 minutes. A survey of Noise as Music from Schoenberg to Glass to Kraftwerk to Industrial and Techno. Noise Art is here to stay.
posted by vacapinta at 3:32 PM PST - 9 comments

Thomas Frank lays it down for you again, anyone still yearning for a more unfettered free market. via anfin
posted by engelr at 3:13 PM PST - 2 comments

while we're on the topic of iraq anyone suprised about these revelations/allegations? username: metafilter46 password: metafilter
posted by specialk420 at 3:10 PM PST - 41 comments

Just another crazy person's site, but I catch myself wasting way too much time here, so maybe you will too. The guy's name is David Blomstrom if I remember right and he really really really cares about Seattle Public Schools. It's his thoughts on the issue that are intriguing though; he's very right about somethings, horribly wrong about others and crazy as hell through out.o
posted by Slimemonster at 2:15 PM PST - 7 comments

Onward Christian Soldiers. "The Fraternity of St. Sebastian is a military brotherhood, still in formation. We are recruiting young men, called to military life, to comprise the charter membership of a Public Association of the Faithful. In the fullness of time the Association will seek institution as a religious, military congregation. And rather than serving a state or civil government, our Corps will serve the Church."

Though not yet officially "blessed" by an Archbishop of the Catholic Church, plans are under way for a bootcamp and, of course, a training compound, as well as the eventual "turning over of [recruits'] real property" to the Association (in the spirit of poverty and of the Knights of Templar.)

Is St Sebastian a new resurgence of the spirit of the Knights Templar of olde (sic) (as opposed to the new)? A church "security service"? Or a new cult-like militia? WILL I SOMEDAY REGRET GIVING THEM PRESS IN THIS LINK?
posted by argybarple at 1:49 PM PST - 23 comments

The link between geekiness and Aspergers Syndrome (a mild form of autism) is fairly well known, if not scientifically proven. But now, a study reported in tbe BBC says that there's a wildly high incidence of childhood autism where geeks are mostly mating with other geeks...
posted by baylink at 12:28 PM PST - 40 comments

The Bush regime is completely called out. (NYTimes) "If the White House wanted anyone to listen, it would not have staged eight separate panels simultaneously on a Tuesday morning in the dog days of August, assuring that complete coverage would be available only on C-Span."
posted by crasspastor at 12:15 PM PST - 34 comments

The FBI on hacking vs. The Russians That is crazy! 100 hundred years for hacking computers when there are people that actually hurt other people - maliciously...rapists, murderers, US politicians... "If Russian hackers can be convicted on evidence obtained by the Americans through hacking, it means the U.S. secret services may use further illegal means of obtaining information in Russia and in other countries," an FSB spokesman told Interfax on Thursday. Not only that, but the seriously...can this sort of thing just slide by?
posted by Kodel at 10:50 AM PST - 2 comments

So you want to book a show for your college? Norm MacDonald is available for $25k and Dave Attell is a steal at $5k.The Red Hot Chili Peppers go for $100k, though.You could always pass the hat, I guess.To hire these people, you have to go through you-know-who.
posted by BarneyFifesBullet at 10:14 AM PST - 44 comments

This new RIAA lawsuit really frosts my cookies! I can't believe the Recording Industry Ass. of America has the balls to think they can censor the Internet, but they contend that "As a matter of fact, copyright itself was written into the Constitution before the Framers ever even got to the first 10 amendments." Therefore, the RIAA reserves for itself the right to determine which Internet websites you may view. Please discuss.
posted by Maxor at 10:03 AM PST - 71 comments

Converging Technologies for Improving Human Performance National Science Foundation and the Department of Commerce sponsored a workshop in 2001 December and released a 405 page document recently. Several journalists then commented on the report. Recently What utopia can technology deliver? on zdnet, earlier When brains meet computer brawn on cnet and Unfogging the Future on techcentralstation. Was there any public debate following these predictions or was it too much to absorb?
posted by neu at 7:17 AM PST - 2 comments

DCF leader: It's OK to spank The man named Thursday by Gov. Jeb Bush to head Florida's notoriously inept child welfare agency is an evangelical Christian who views spanking that causes ''bruises or welts'' as acceptable punishment. In a 1989 essay entitled The Christian World View of the Family, Regier and co-author George Rekers railed against abortion and gay couples forming families, and emphasized that husbands have ``final say in any family dispute.''
posted by bas67 at 6:35 AM PST - 82 comments

Room for rent. Similar to the Clinton administration that they heavily criticized, the Bush folks have opened a bed and breakfast up in that big White House with the cee-ment pond. Rates are steep but one thing many guests share is a membership in the exclusive Pioneer Club.

One of my favorites is Edward Rose, Mr. Rose is a staunch Bush supporter having donated more than 42,000 dollars in the past along with $2,000[1] directly. Then there is the Betts family, patriarch Roland was Dubyas frat brother and besides selling him the Texas Rangers has donated $19,000 along with another 4K[1] directly. For outright generosity it's tough to beat Brad Freeman, who opened his pockets to the tune of some 190,000 dollars.There's Joe O'Donnell ($9,250)and James Simmons ($27,550)... the list goes on but you get the idea. Aside from the Pioneer Club the only other thing these people share is great wealth and successful business careers, considering his choice in houseguests is this the right person to hold corporate America accountable?
posted by cedar at 5:57 AM PST - 32 comments

The Struggle Continues!. Young Hae-Chang's flash classics include Samsung, the frenzied Royal Crown Super Salon, the languid Jongno, and two amusing masterpieces: Samsung Means To Come, and Hallf Breed Apache. More at her site.
posted by hama7 at 1:44 AM PST - 22 comments

How can we protect our Children?
posted by Spoon at 1:21 AM PST - 58 comments