Saturday, May 31, 2003
Nostalgic.net, an antique bicycle site, has a complete 1919 Black Beauty Catalog reproduced and available online.
"I'm not reading this. This is bullshit."
Colin Powell on the Bush Administration's phony and dishonest Iraqi weapon's report.
Colin Powell on the Bush Administration's phony and dishonest Iraqi weapon's report.
Deregulation is a right wing power grab. Well, no shit. Every Show me a policy of the current illegitimate administration that isn't.
Reed Hundt says Monday's historic vote is "the culmination of the attack by the right on the media.
Reed Hundt says Monday's historic vote is "the culmination of the attack by the right on the media.
Friday, May 30, 2003
[Anti-Hummer] I wouldn't want to be in a Smart Car on I-95 in rush hour, but I'd love to drive one for a few days.
Lou Reed, Kung Fu: Together at last.
Long known for a variety of interests from Harleys to photography to electronic music to architecture, Reed’s subsequent passion became kung fu, and specifically tai chi. Having studied since the 1980s in NY with Eagle Claw master Leung Shum
Eagle Claw? Pffft. My Dancing Raven technique will put Eagle Claw to dishonor!
Long known for a variety of interests from Harleys to photography to electronic music to architecture, Reed’s subsequent passion became kung fu, and specifically tai chi. Having studied since the 1980s in NY with Eagle Claw master Leung Shum
Eagle Claw? Pffft. My Dancing Raven technique will put Eagle Claw to dishonor!
I hate commercials as much as the next guy, but you've gotta see this Rube-Goldbergesque piece of genius from Honda. I found it in a post where the author claimed it took 606 takes and used no CGI whatsoever, but I'm not buying it (wheels rolling uphill were a giveaway).
Tuesday, May 27, 2003
Phillippe Masson Bookplate Collection - The fantastic searchable database of ex-libris bookplate scans.
Resumes pour into Bechtel for Iraq rebuilding work.Construction work has been hard to come by in Bryce Randolph's hometown of Redding. So he's set his sights on Iraq and Bechtel Corp., the San Francisco firm that's been hired to help rebuild the war-torn country. "For the amount of money I could make, I would do anything," said Bryce, a heavy-equipment operator who has sent job-seeking e-mails to Bechtel several times. "That would turn my whole life around."
An Iraqi man spends 20 years in hiding - between his parents walls - from a Saddam death sentence.
Twenty-one years ago, Saddam Hussein placed an execution order on Jawad Amir for supporting an outspoken Shia cleric. Mr Amir escaped - not into a far-off town or neighbouring country, but into a space sandwiched between two walls in his parents' home.
Twenty-one years ago, Saddam Hussein placed an execution order on Jawad Amir for supporting an outspoken Shia cleric. Mr Amir escaped - not into a far-off town or neighbouring country, but into a space sandwiched between two walls in his parents' home.
Networked PS2 Supercomputer. If you're into this sort of thing, you can also pop Linux on your XBox and run a Beowulf cluster.
Monday, May 26, 2003
[Some Say it With A Brick] A sociological deconstruction of Krazy Kat and Ignatz Mouse I'm a fiend for this comic, so I love reading this type of thing.
For ostracized though he may be, Krazy has good reason for wishing to maintain his position as the official Other of Coconino County; it gives him license to shift roles at necessity and at whim, he has freedom in his changeable identity. This freedom results from Herriman's understanding that identity is constructed through the continual misrecognition of political, social, and discursive parameters for natural constraints on subjectivity. The destabilized identity of Krazy suggests the possibility of a new, less fixed and more liberated kind of subject. Herriman could not explicitly describe such a subject, but suggested it with the naive inscrutability of the Kat...
For ostracized though he may be, Krazy has good reason for wishing to maintain his position as the official Other of Coconino County; it gives him license to shift roles at necessity and at whim, he has freedom in his changeable identity. This freedom results from Herriman's understanding that identity is constructed through the continual misrecognition of political, social, and discursive parameters for natural constraints on subjectivity. The destabilized identity of Krazy suggests the possibility of a new, less fixed and more liberated kind of subject. Herriman could not explicitly describe such a subject, but suggested it with the naive inscrutability of the Kat...
The Woody Guthrie Foundation and Archives.
By the time he arrived in California, in 1937, Woody had experienced the intense scorn, hatred, and antagonism of resident Californians who were opposed to the influx of outsiders. Woody's identification with outsider status would become part and parcel of his political and social positioning, one which gradually worked its way into his songwriting, as evident in his Dust Bowl Ballads such as I Ain't Got No Home, Goin' Down the Road Feelin' Bad, Talking Dust Bowl Blues, Tom Joad and Hard Travelin'.
Bound for Glory: The Life and Times of Woody Guthrie
Woody Guthrie: Forever Young
Father of Contemporary Protest
The Songs of Woody Guthrie (lyrics+more)
In the late 1930s, Guthrie sent out small mimeographed songbooks to radio listeners who requested the words to his song that, according to Pete Seeger, contained the following at the bottom of the page: "This song is Copyrighted in U.S., under Seal of Copyright #154085, for a period of 28 years, and anybody caught singin it without our permission, will be mighty good friends of ourn, cause we don't give a dern. Publish it. Write it. Sing it. Swing to it. Yodel it. We wrote it, that's all we wanted to do."
Also, a great photo of Woody and his "This Machine Kills Fascists" Gibson acoustic guitar. (Martin issued a "commemorative" This Machine Kills Fascists acoustic which seems kind of odd, especially since they apparently thought the message was too controversial and hid it on the underside of the soundboard where nobody can see it.)
By the time he arrived in California, in 1937, Woody had experienced the intense scorn, hatred, and antagonism of resident Californians who were opposed to the influx of outsiders. Woody's identification with outsider status would become part and parcel of his political and social positioning, one which gradually worked its way into his songwriting, as evident in his Dust Bowl Ballads such as I Ain't Got No Home, Goin' Down the Road Feelin' Bad, Talking Dust Bowl Blues, Tom Joad and Hard Travelin'.
Bound for Glory: The Life and Times of Woody Guthrie
Woody Guthrie: Forever Young
Father of Contemporary Protest
The Songs of Woody Guthrie (lyrics+more)
In the late 1930s, Guthrie sent out small mimeographed songbooks to radio listeners who requested the words to his song that, according to Pete Seeger, contained the following at the bottom of the page: "This song is Copyrighted in U.S., under Seal of Copyright #154085, for a period of 28 years, and anybody caught singin it without our permission, will be mighty good friends of ourn, cause we don't give a dern. Publish it. Write it. Sing it. Swing to it. Yodel it. We wrote it, that's all we wanted to do."
Also, a great photo of Woody and his "This Machine Kills Fascists" Gibson acoustic guitar. (Martin issued a "commemorative" This Machine Kills Fascists acoustic which seems kind of odd, especially since they apparently thought the message was too controversial and hid it on the underside of the soundboard where nobody can see it.)
Saturday, May 24, 2003
Thursday, May 22, 2003
Wednesday, May 21, 2003
The Web and Big Media (Salon)
FCC Chairman Michael Powell is in favor of throwing away even more regulations protecting media outlets from the giants.
The rules Powell has been itching to scrap are those that place ownership limits on companies that own newspapers and television stations. Critics of the plan fear that it will lead to an ever more concentrated media world, one in which much of what we see, hear and read is controlled by a handful of mega-corporations.
FCC Chairman Michael Powell is in favor of throwing away even more regulations protecting media outlets from the giants.
The rules Powell has been itching to scrap are those that place ownership limits on companies that own newspapers and television stations. Critics of the plan fear that it will lead to an ever more concentrated media world, one in which much of what we see, hear and read is controlled by a handful of mega-corporations.
Bush's Brownshirts: In the most detailed public accounting of how it had used its expanded powers to fight terrorism, the Justice Department released information today showing that federal agents had conducted hundreds of bugging and surveillance operations and visited numerous libraries and mosques using new law enforcement tools. (NYTimes)
Jobs are flying offshore
"It seems like a race to the bottom," says Turner. "All these jobs are leaving the state and the country, and our unemployment rate continues to climb. We're in a recession and you have to wonder where it ends. The point of the contract was to save money - assuming that these people overseas can do it cheaper and more efficiently. But this is a ruse because we're supposed to help provide jobs to these [unemployed] people here."
"It seems like a race to the bottom," says Turner. "All these jobs are leaving the state and the country, and our unemployment rate continues to climb. We're in a recession and you have to wonder where it ends. The point of the contract was to save money - assuming that these people overseas can do it cheaper and more efficiently. But this is a ruse because we're supposed to help provide jobs to these [unemployed] people here."
Tuesday, May 20, 2003
How does the Borg cubeship size up against the Deathstar (II)? Find out using starship dimensions scale charts. Courtesy of memepool.
Hey Good Lookin', Insurance companies will write a policy to protect your beautiful face.
Pentagon Readies Massive Spying System The Pentagon assured Congress that its planned anti-terror surveillance system will only analyze legally acquired information and changed the name of the project to help allay privacy concerns that prompted congressional restrictions.
The TIA report is here: http://www.eff.org/Privacy/TIA/20030520_tia_report.php
The EFF Advisory on the report is here: http://www.eff.org/Privacy/TIA/20030520_pr.php
The TIA report is here: http://www.eff.org/Privacy/TIA/20030520_tia_report.php
The EFF Advisory on the report is here: http://www.eff.org/Privacy/TIA/20030520_pr.php
Monday, May 19, 2003
Friday, May 16, 2003
Anybody who's stopped to read this thing for any length of time knows how scared to death the Daily Jive is of puppets. Imagine my horror when I visited Sharpeworld and stumbled on to a sick counterculture where puppets are created in the image of ordinary people, then carefully photographed in a JC Penney portrait studio setting, the disturbing results of which are displayed alongside their human counterparts. Egad.
Puppet portraits make outstanding birthday presents, anniversary gifts, Mother's Day gifts, or a special, unique gift for any occasion you choose, real or imagined. They're guaranteed to bring a smile, and touch a heart. How about a wedding portrait for a 50th anniversary couple? Let your imagination run wild. The possibilities are endless. Basic puppet portrait cost: $125.00 + accessories.
Puppet portraits make outstanding birthday presents, anniversary gifts, Mother's Day gifts, or a special, unique gift for any occasion you choose, real or imagined. They're guaranteed to bring a smile, and touch a heart. How about a wedding portrait for a 50th anniversary couple? Let your imagination run wild. The possibilities are endless. Basic puppet portrait cost: $125.00 + accessories.
Kiss my split tongue: The legalities of Botox vs. more "extreme" body modifications.
So then. Someone slicing their tongue, or stretching their earlobes, or piercing their clitoris, all in the name of their own self-defined subcultural semianarchic context of beauty and pleasure and self-realization and Ethan Allen spanking, is this such a bad thing? Who are you, with the boob job and the bleached teeth and the $250 haircut and the cute little dolphin tattoo, to protest?
I have no problem with tongue-splitting or the various sub-dermal spike-insertions that seem to be the rage lately, but I'd gladly support legislation that bans self-tattooing. Apparently non-inmates are doing this now. It must be stopped.
Wendy"my fience' saw how good my work was getting and decide she wanted another tat. she found a Miney mouse in the book where i got Goofy. I put it on her right ankle and it looks emaculant. I did an incredable job on it. then i took the picture of her Miney and made her into Mickey and put it on my right ankle. Now we have a pair of good looking matching tats.
So then. Someone slicing their tongue, or stretching their earlobes, or piercing their clitoris, all in the name of their own self-defined subcultural semianarchic context of beauty and pleasure and self-realization and Ethan Allen spanking, is this such a bad thing? Who are you, with the boob job and the bleached teeth and the $250 haircut and the cute little dolphin tattoo, to protest?
I have no problem with tongue-splitting or the various sub-dermal spike-insertions that seem to be the rage lately, but I'd gladly support legislation that bans self-tattooing. Apparently non-inmates are doing this now. It must be stopped.
Wendy"my fience' saw how good my work was getting and decide she wanted another tat. she found a Miney mouse in the book where i got Goofy. I put it on her right ankle and it looks emaculant. I did an incredable job on it. then i took the picture of her Miney and made her into Mickey and put it on my right ankle. Now we have a pair of good looking matching tats.
Thursday, May 15, 2003
"You sanctimonious twit": The public L/R debate between New York Times and FoxNews regarding editorial positions on the war.
Monday, May 12, 2003
Hey, Swami! All things Ouija-y: The nicely-named and URLed (but not nearly so perfect as this) Museum of Talking Boards.
As a design collection, the Gallery is fantastic. It's even got something called the ka-bala which instructs you to chant "PAX, SAX, SARAX, HOLA, NOA., NOSTRA", which, if I were you, I wouldn't chant.
As a design collection, the Gallery is fantastic. It's even got something called the ka-bala which instructs you to chant "PAX, SAX, SARAX, HOLA, NOA., NOSTRA", which, if I were you, I wouldn't chant.
"It's not irony anymore; its just shameless and brazen," said Dan Briody, a New York journalist who broke one of the first stories about Bush's connection to Carlyle. (from 'Hubris Unbound', Tim Shorrock, The Nation)
Back in the late 1600's, the Dutch invented the two-sheet mold. The average maximum stretch of an experienced vatman's arms was 44". Many molds at that time were around 17" front to back because the laid lines and watermarks had to run from left to right. Sounds big?...well to maximize the efficiency of paper making, a sheet this big was made, and then quartered, forming four 8.5" x 11" pieces.
"This report clearly illustrates how dangerous it has become since the terrorist attacks of September 11 to criticize the President of the United States or his policies," said Anthony D. Romero, Executive Director of the ACLU. "Government officials and political leaders must not be allowed to chill the free and robust debate that has made the American way of life the envy of nations and its Constitution a beacon to the world."
[Bush's War on Democracy] Secret Service questions students who made comments about the unelected occupant of the Presidential office.
"When one of the students asked, 'do we have to talk now? Can we be silent? Can we get legal council?' they were told, 'we own you, you don't have any legal rights,'"
"When one of the students asked, 'do we have to talk now? Can we be silent? Can we get legal council?' they were told, 'we own you, you don't have any legal rights,'"
In 1987, Brown told Hunter and two dozen other first-graders at Brookfield Elementary School that she would put them through college if they graduated from high school. Four years ago, most of them did, with 19 enrolling in college.
"I have tried to do all that I can do," said Brown, who had been making $45, 000 a year when she started setting aside $10,000 a year into a trust fund nearly two decades ago.
"I have tried to do all that I can do," said Brown, who had been making $45, 000 a year when she started setting aside $10,000 a year into a trust fund nearly two decades ago.
Friday, May 09, 2003
Thursday, May 08, 2003
TheOnion's interview with John Malkovich
The world is ruled by violence, or at least the imminent threat of violence. It always has been. This is the way the world is, and there's nothing I can do about it–I mean, I can say it, I can observe it, I can have a feeling about whether that's good or bad. I could have, even, some empirical evidence that it's good or bad. But it doesn't matter, because that's what rules the world. Violence.
The world is ruled by violence, or at least the imminent threat of violence. It always has been. This is the way the world is, and there's nothing I can do about it–I mean, I can say it, I can observe it, I can have a feeling about whether that's good or bad. I could have, even, some empirical evidence that it's good or bad. But it doesn't matter, because that's what rules the world. Violence.
ScotRail to use DNA to track down people who spit at staff
The move follows research which revealed that around one third of all assaults on ScotRail staff involve spitting
The move follows research which revealed that around one third of all assaults on ScotRail staff involve spitting
Monday, May 05, 2003
Unused Audio Commentary by Howard Zinn and Noam Chomsky, recorded Summer 2002, for the Fellowship of the Ring (Platinum Series Extended Edition) DVD, Part Two. (McSweeneys)
Chomsky: Think of it from the Black Riders' perspective. No doubt they arrived at Weathertop thinking, "Can we ask a few questions? We'd like to talk to you."
Chomsky: Think of it from the Black Riders' perspective. No doubt they arrived at Weathertop thinking, "Can we ask a few questions? We'd like to talk to you."
“I am not for the Bush plan. It screams of injustice. The main beneficiaries will be people like me and Charlie,” he said, referring to the Berkshire Hathaway vice-chairman Charlie Munger. Mr Buffett said the tax plan was equivalent to “us giving a lesser percentage of our incomes to Washington than the people working in our shoe factories”.
Even the filthy rich are outraged by the spoiled, entitled faux-president's plan.
Even the filthy rich are outraged by the spoiled, entitled faux-president's plan.
If you like reading Weird New Jersey, and I highly recommend it no matter where you live, (issue 20 out now), you'll probably also get a kick out of MidnightSociety.
Sunday, May 04, 2003
Centralia, Pennsylvania: A town slowly burning from below since 1962. My brother took some amazing video a few years back, showing smoke pouring from sinkholes in the woods a few feet from the yard of one of the homes still lived in.
Walking and/or driving in the immediate area could result in serious injury or death. There are dangerous gases present, and the ground is prone to sudden and unexpected collapse. DEP strongly discourages anyone from visiting the immediate area.
This lonely arial photo courtesy of Mapquest is perhaps the most telling, showing an empty grid that once held an entire town, now ruined and desolate.
Another nearby town, Byrnesville, was finally lost in 1996 to the same coal-seam fire.
Walking and/or driving in the immediate area could result in serious injury or death. There are dangerous gases present, and the ground is prone to sudden and unexpected collapse. DEP strongly discourages anyone from visiting the immediate area.
This lonely arial photo courtesy of Mapquest is perhaps the most telling, showing an empty grid that once held an entire town, now ruined and desolate.
Another nearby town, Byrnesville, was finally lost in 1996 to the same coal-seam fire.
List of Drive-Ins Still In Operation
Many owners, such as Cindy Deppe of Becky's Drive-In (Berlinsville, Pa.) and Elwood Haar of Haar's Drive-In (Dillsburg, Pa.) are continuing the legacy their fathers built. Deppe shares management duties with her brothers Dennis and Darrell Beck and her sister Mary Mayberry at the drive-in their father opened in 1946. Husband Dean is the projectionist. Deppe says there are also two non-related families that have worked at the theatre for more than 20 years. One couple who works there met at Becky's, and have now been married more than 40 years. One obvious characteristic of drive-ins is that many are family-owned and operated, with the unrelated staff becoming like family to the owners.
Many owners, such as Cindy Deppe of Becky's Drive-In (Berlinsville, Pa.) and Elwood Haar of Haar's Drive-In (Dillsburg, Pa.) are continuing the legacy their fathers built. Deppe shares management duties with her brothers Dennis and Darrell Beck and her sister Mary Mayberry at the drive-in their father opened in 1946. Husband Dean is the projectionist. Deppe says there are also two non-related families that have worked at the theatre for more than 20 years. One couple who works there met at Becky's, and have now been married more than 40 years. One obvious characteristic of drive-ins is that many are family-owned and operated, with the unrelated staff becoming like family to the owners.
Saturday, May 03, 2003
Friday, May 02, 2003
I've been a fan of Paul Weller's since the Jam, and the guy really is the Modfather: his online shop has deadly mod shoes.
From Coolandstrange music, Searching for Mrs. Miller.
Conventional legend has it that Mrs. Miller had no idea that she was a novelty act, but Lois Bock is quite clear about what Mrs. Miller was told. "Fred and I were honest with her. We told her it would be funny. And the audience loved it.
Conventional legend has it that Mrs. Miller had no idea that she was a novelty act, but Lois Bock is quite clear about what Mrs. Miller was told. "Fred and I were honest with her. We told her it would be funny. And the audience loved it.
The Optigan
In the early 70's, Mattel devised this OPTIcal orGAN to play back the sounds of REAL instruments, encoded on celluloid discs like concentric rings of movie soundtrack. The result was pretty crappy sounding and soon forgotten by the world at large, but if this sounds to you like perfect fodder for an obsessive, almost fetishistic website, then you're absolutely correct!
In the early 70's, Mattel devised this OPTIcal orGAN to play back the sounds of REAL instruments, encoded on celluloid discs like concentric rings of movie soundtrack. The result was pretty crappy sounding and soon forgotten by the world at large, but if this sounds to you like perfect fodder for an obsessive, almost fetishistic website, then you're absolutely correct!
A nice collection of Jaw Harps (aka Jews Harps) including links to the Kentucky Mouthbow and the experimental Jawsaphone (jaw harp + trumpet bell).
They're not just for Los Straitjackets anymore: Mexican wrestling masks, in "Commercial" and "Semi-Pro" grades.
Thursday, May 01, 2003
The theory and art of circuit bending.
Circuit-bending is an electronic art which implements creative audio short-circuiting. This renegade path of electrons represents a catalytic force capable of exploding new experimental musical forms forward at a velocity previously unknown.
Circuit-bending is an electronic art which implements creative audio short-circuiting. This renegade path of electrons represents a catalytic force capable of exploding new experimental musical forms forward at a velocity previously unknown.
To music industry marketing execs, artist development means coopting even the vaguest hints of talent into a dying lowest-common-denominator vacuous piece of preteen-targeted synchro-dance pop fluff. Even war-ravaged countries aren't safe: Baghdad Boy Band: let the exploitation begin! Why was it that people aren't buying CDs anymore? Oh yeah... Grokster. Right, right right.