A Torture Two-for-One: Christopher Hitchens Writes About Waterboarding
[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 3, 2008 by admin in Politics, Popular Media
The big question is: Why’d they stop dunking?
Leave it to Christopher Hitchens to throw in the little dramatic bits that let you know how brave he is right before he confesses to a fear of drowning caused by “a bad childhood moment on the Isle of Wight, when I got out of my depth”. Yes, he’s still the hungover drama queen he’s always been, but my hat’s off to Mr. Hitchens for bringing to the larger public’s attention once again the barberic and detestable practice known as waterboarding. America needs to make some amends and genuinely claen up its act after these past eight years of Cheney-Rumsfeld-Wolfowitz-driven sadism and insanity. Good show, Hitchens. You can read the full article at VanityFair.com
Faceless Alien Guerilla Marketers
[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 3, 2008 by admin in Popular Media
What’s up with the mysterious faceless aliens spotted around England lately?
Web Urbanist has an interesting eight-part series on guerrilla marketing. It covers topics ranging from the early history of guerrilla marketing to contemporary flops like the Aqua Teen Hunger Force fiasco in Boston (but was that a flop?). They also do a reasonably good job of clarifying the difference between guerrilla vs viral marketing . I wonder if they have a scoop on the mysterious faceless aliens spotted around England recently?
Spread the Word, or Spread the Compost?
[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 3, 2008 by admin in Clean & Green, Lifestyle & Culture
Is leaving your leftovers on top of trash cans really going to feed the homeless?
Call me cynical, but maybe the people that are so worried about this issue and have time to design nifty graphics for it could just order less food? Or think of a way to convert their waste pizza to fuel? I’m not sure what I think about RePlate.org’s idea of putting your unfinished food on top of trash cans instead of in them to make it easier for homeless people to eat it. It seems to me there are plenty of people who are happy enough doing the necessary diving for dinner that we’d really just be creating a trash problem rather than performing a public service. Interesting concept though. Read their FAQ and decide for yourself.
Hasselhoffian Recursion Cures Alzheimer’s*
[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 2, 2008 by admin in Lifestyle & Culture, Popular Media, Technology
At last, a remote for your remote.
As a friend fumbled for her reading glasses the other day, I made the tired joke about the paradox of needing glasses to find your glasses. She added that she’s always forgetting where she left the remote, and having to (gasp) walk across the room and manually change the channel. This is something I’m sure we’ve all experienced, but need experience no more! Thanks to products like the “Remote Buddy“, pictured at left, your fat American rear can spend more time on the sofa, and less time burning precious body fat as you frantically search for the remote. In fact, with these handy “finder” tools
*Sometimes a headline is just a headline.
Wouldn’t The Guy That DIDN’T Get Shot Down Be A Better Candidate?
[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 2, 2008 by admin in Politics
Speaking the truth isn’t always so useful. The Dems need to be a little more republican if they want to win in November.
Only in politics can someone state a simple truth like Wes Clark’s remark that getting shot down as a fighter pilot doesn’t qualify you to be president, and have it dominate the news cycle for days. What this really highlights, in my opinion, is the fact that the Democrats either don’t really care if they win in November, or they haven’t learned a bloody thing from the past eight or so years. Get a message, Dems, and stick to it. Here’s a link to the GOP Playbook (PDF), if you need a primer. The DailyKos even has a searchable web-page version. Get it together, Obamaniacs, get it together. Slate has an insightful piece, The Grunt vs. the Flyboy, that sheds some light on what might lead Wes Clark to wander into such a major message blunder.