Reverend Colinski's Spasmodic Sermon

De Düva

2009-03-22T00:41:00.000-07:00

This short film is a happy childhood memory of mine. Enjoy.

Where the McCain campaign got their strategy

2008-10-17T19:00:00.000-07:00

Attention Elites!

2008-10-15T17:37:00.001-07:00

DEAR AMERICAN IMPORTANT REQUEST

2008-09-30T17:53:00.001-07:00

Dear American:

I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationship with a transfer of funds of great magnitude.

I am Ministry of the Treasury of the Republic of America. My country has had crisis that has caused the need for large transfer of funds of 800 billion dollars US. If you would assist me in this transfer, it would be most profitable to you.

I am working with Mr. Phil Gram, lobbyist for UBS, who will be my replacement as Ministry of the Treasury in January. As a Senator, you may know him as the leader of the American banking deregulation movement in the 1990s. This transactin is 100% safe.

This is a matter of great urgency. We need a blank check. We need the funds as quickly as possible. We cannot directly transfer these funds in the names of our close friends because we are constantly under surveillance. My family lawyer advised me that I should look for a reliable and trustworthy person who will act as a next of kin so the funds can be transferred.

Please reply with all of your bank account, IRA and college fund account numbers and those of your children and grandchildren to wallstreetbailout@treasury.gov so that we may transfer your commission for this transaction. After I receive that information, I will respond with detailed information about safeguards that will be used to protect the funds.

Yours Faithfully Minister of Treasury Paulson

VERY IMPORTANT PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT!

2008-09-08T12:11:00.001-07:00

Attention Sarah Palin

2008-09-08T09:40:00.000-07:00

So that's how it's done!

2008-09-07T22:34:00.000-07:00

I call insurance company rules!

2008-07-21T12:08:00.001-07:00

Hat tip to Crooks & Liars by way of Javajunkee.

Mix Tapes

2008-07-18T14:30:00.000-07:00

I think this is utterly fantastic.

Hat Tip to Idiot Comics.

Quote of the Day

2008-07-15T08:59:00.000-07:00

One male friend boasted, "I'm even doing yoga now, thanks to the Wii" -- a claim that sounds uncomfortably similar to, "My sex life has really improved, thanks to this new electric vagina."

From a story on Salon.com.

I'm voting Republican!

2008-06-16T13:02:00.000-07:00

[Hap tit to the Javajunkee]

Today's "DUH" Award goes to...

2008-06-12T13:36:00.000-07:00

The LA Times article, "That 'new shower curtain smell' gives off toxic chemicals, study says."

Really? Nobody bothered to study this before? Nobody besides me ever put up a new shower curtain and practically had to open a window because of the fumes? Apparently I need to start pointing more things out to others, like, "hey, these smell like they're giving off toxic fumes. Maybe they could be analyzed?"

You are getting sleepy...

2008-06-11T15:06:00.000-07:00

[This is just for shits and giggles, not "self hypnosis" or somesuch nonsense.]

How to stop drinking...

2008-06-05T08:35:00.001-07:00

No on Prop 98!

2008-06-03T10:59:00.000-07:00

Follow up to yesterday's post, I share this video for those of you with short attention spans or busy lives (I fall somewhere in between).

(Brim tip to LAist.)

Californians: If you rent, or just care about someone who does...

2008-06-02T15:00:00.001-07:00

VOTE TOMORROW, and VOTE NO ON PROP 98!

Proposition 98 claims to be to prevent the guv'mint from seizing your property in the name of "eminent domain", but it contains hidden provisions to ELIMINATE RENT CONTROL, which appears to be the actual intent behind the measure, using eminent domain as a red herring.

Rent control protects renters from greedy landlords jacking up your rates willy nilly. If you rent, or just care about people that do (me, for instance), shoot down this wolf in sheep's clothing.

Frankly I don't care what happens to Prop 99 (the other eminent domain proposition, without the hidden gutting of renter's protections). I care about people who are homeowners, but I think it's highly unlikely any of them will suffer from an eminent domain seizure that Prop 99 can protect them from. Eminent domain is an emotionally charged issue (the government basically taking your home, albeit compensated, which the Supreme Court ruled sometime in the past few years was perfectly acceptable, for something even as trivial as economic development) which made it a great distraction from the measure's real agenda of eliminating very basic laws that protect those of us who can't afford to buy a home.

Read more and be an informed citizen, sucka!

AND FUCKING VOTE!

[Update: LAist has a much more in-depth post on why this proposition would be a horrible mistake to pass than I'm willing to do, in case you're not so convinced by me.]

For God so loved the world...

2008-05-21T11:43:00.000-07:00

I love SMBC.

P.P.S. I can kill you with my brain

2008-04-04T09:43:00.000-07:00

I love xkcd.

I'm f*cking Obama

2008-04-01T16:37:00.001-07:00

Tip o' the brim to Salon's War Room blog

If I don't get to sleep, neither do you...

2008-04-01T15:21:00.000-07:00

Sorry to do this, but I think it's like The Ring, and if I share this maybe the eggman won't haunt my dreams.

Tip of my angry hat to Joe Mathelete.

What Easter is really about

2008-03-24T09:53:00.001-07:00

Happy Cadbury Monday, everyone!

Grand Central Stationary

2008-03-20T12:12:00.000-07:00

Nerd Alert!

2008-03-05T08:55:00.000-08:00

(That is, an alert for my fellow nerds)

GARY GYGAX IS DEAD AT AGE 69

My junior high years wouldn't have been the same without him.

[UPDATE:

The Onion did an "American Voices" piece on Gygax's death. Check it out.

UPDATE 2:

xkcd has done their own take:
]

"See, here at Fox we like to be feminine"

2008-03-04T10:21:00.000-08:00

Be careful that your head doesn't explode as you enjoy this 30-second clip from "Fox and Friends" that would not seem out of place in Anchorman:

I'm Ron Burgundy?

Tip du chapeau to Salon's War Room blog.

1 get get the edge2 get a job3 get off herion

2008-02-29T09:10:00.000-08:00

Tipp der Hut to FOUND Magazine, which is going into my RSS reader posthaste.

My new favorite thing on the web

2008-02-28T15:37:00.000-08:00

Garfield Minus Garfield

Here's the description from their header:

Who would have guessed that when you remove Garfield from the Garfield comic strips, the result is an even better comic about schizophrenia, bipolor disorder, and the empty desperation of modern life? Friends, meet Jon Arbuckle. Let’s laugh and learn with him on a journey deep into the tortured mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against lonliness and methamphetamine addiction in a quiet American suburb.

Gotta love it. Tip o' the derby to The Comics Curmudgeon, another favorite.

Are you gone? Real gone?

2008-02-26T21:51:00.000-08:00

(Thanks to NYT Paper Cuts blog for the link)

Winner of 2008 election accidentally leaked!

2008-02-26T12:29:00.000-08:00

Diebold Accidentally Leaks Results Of 2008 Election Early

Video of the f*cking year!

2008-02-12T15:40:00.001-08:00

Haven't posted in a while. Hope this makes up for it.

Enough to make me want to run away...

2007-12-13T13:28:00.001-08:00

First, let me ~~commend~~ scratch my head in disbelief at our 110th Congress for overwhelmingly passing a resolution "recognizing the importance of Christmas and the Christian faith", which amongst other things:

recognizes the Christian faith as one of the great religions of the world

and more ominously:

acknowledges and supports the role played by Christians and Christianity in the founding of the United States and in the formation of the western civilization.

I feel compelled at this point to quote none other the guy on our $1 bill, George Washington:

The United States is in no sense founded upon the Christian doctrine.

Thanks, George. You can read the full text of this lunacy at my pal Travis' blog. The roll call on the resolution can be found here. That's right, 372 yeas to 9 nays.

What I found most fascinating were the votes of four congressmen in particular, whose non-Christian religious beliefs have been noted over the past year: Keith Ellison (DFL-MN), our nation's first Muslim congressman; Hank Johnson (D-GA) and Mazie Hirono (D-HI), the first two (or two of the first -- I'm finding mixed reports) Buddhists in the House ("Buddhists in th' Hizzouse! w00t w00t!"); and Pete Stark of California, our nation's highest public-office-holding atheist. One might think that Ellison, who courageously withstood right-wing criticism by swearing his oath of office on the Koran, or Hirono, who, more courageously if you ask me, swore in on no book at all (with virtually no media attention or blowhard pundit ire), would be willing to stand up and object to our Congress taking another step toward instituting Christianity as our national religion. Nope. The Muslim and both Buddhists are on record as voting in the affirmative. The only one of the four who voted "Nay" was the atheist. And, well, he'd already done about the most courageous thing a politician can apparently do in this country, so let's applaud Stark's massive cojones, along with his sensible cohorts who stood with his against this collective madness:

Gary Ackerman (D-NY)
Yvette Clark (D-NY)
Diana DeGette (D-CO)
Alcee Hastings (D-FL)
Barbara Lee (D-CA)
Jim Mcdermott (D-WA)
Bobby Scott (D-VA)
Lynn Woolsey (D-CA)

Oh, and here's a brief clip of the other thing that makes me want to run away:

I highly recommend watching the full twenty-minute film. But again, it may make you want to run away (but there's nowhere to run!). Tip o' my brim to Chris for bringing this to my attention.

Happy Birthday, E.S. R.I.P., credible, intelligent broadcast journalism.

2007-11-26T11:35:00.000-08:00

Regarding this blog that I do spasmodically...

2007-11-16T08:53:00.001-08:00

Reese's & Elvis

2007-11-11T21:15:00.000-08:00

Together at last! Peanut butter and banana creme flavored Reese's cups.
And... Not as horrifying as they sound. They're actually pretty good! And you have a chance to win an "Elvis Tribute Car"! Win-win!

I'm growing a beard

2007-11-06T10:47:00.000-08:00

Pretty soon I'm going to look like this guy:

And I'm going to hang out at dockside bars...

Happy Halloween!

2007-10-31T11:30:00.001-07:00

Eating meat makes Sam Neill bust a move!

2007-10-29T15:10:00.000-07:00

As long as PETA keeps producing ads that make people feel bad about themselves and the meat industry releases propaganda like this, the general public ain't gonna go veg.

Affleckdinejad

2007-10-29T14:44:00.000-07:00

Is it just me, or did Ben Affleck look like he was trying to look like the president of Iran on his recent Daily Show appearance?

Support the Ocular Penetration Restriction Act of 2007!

2007-10-17T12:23:00.000-07:00

Live From Congress

Northern Utah Grammar Nazis

2007-10-12T18:53:00.000-07:00

Peddler's Restaurant - Ogden, UT

It says, "All Employee⁺s must wash thⁱere hands before returning to work."

Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na

2007-10-11T18:52:00.001-07:00

BAT BAT!

Outside the Marriott in Ogden, UT

Tread carefully, Grammar Nazis! They've set traps!

2007-10-08T09:39:00.001-07:00

Bubble Up on the Sunset Strip

2007-09-29T01:17:00.001-07:00

Also, th' Legendary Shack*Shakers and Skeeter Truck rocked the fuck out of the Roxy tonight! You missed out.

Beware of false prophets and their license plate holders

2007-09-22T22:57:00.001-07:00

"For all you do..."

Sighted at the LA County Fair- Pomona, CA

Overheard at the LA County Fair

2007-09-22T21:29:00.000-07:00

"Don't break the egg homie!" - Spoken by a small, blonde girl to a chicken

Deep Fried Oreos!

2007-09-22T21:27:00.001-07:00

The Pillsbury Doughboy weeps

2007-09-22T21:26:00.000-07:00

LA County Fair, Pomona, CA

Deep Fried Everything!

2007-09-22T21:25:00.001-07:00

Frog legs, peanut butter & banana sandwich, veggies, s'mores, avocados, Coke, Twinkies, Oreos, all deep fried, plus the Krispy Kreme Chicken Sandwich! That's right, folks, a piece of fried chicken on a Krispy Kreme donut.

LA County Fair- Pomona, CA

Chinchilla bath

2007-09-22T21:18:00.000-07:00

(That is a chinchilla in there, being the cutest damn thing ever.)

LA County Fair- Pomona, CA

Cowabunga!

2007-09-22T17:23:00.001-07:00

I like the surfin' eyeball.

LA County Fair- Pomona. CA

Creep Show

2007-09-22T16:57:00.001-07:00

(Note the enormous cleavage on the top left)

LA County Fair- Pomona, CA

As seen from La Grande Wheel

2007-09-22T16:55:00.000-07:00

LA County Fair- Pomona, CA

Confusing stairs at UCLA

2007-09-21T13:43:00.000-07:00

Do I walk that way or not!?

Question, LA

2007-09-21T12:48:00.001-07:00

Where's the rain I was promised? I want my money back!

[Update: OK, I take it back. I got my fill. Stop.]

Darth Vader Blues

2007-09-21T09:31:00.000-07:00

It's been a while. Just haven't been in a bloggin' way these last few weeks. I don't know that this post marks a return to regular entries, but I couldn't not share this with my four loyal readers:

[Tip o' th' hat to Hobotopia who found it via Neatorama, who found it via GorillaMask, who found it via College Humor....]

Dead dead eyes

2007-09-02T13:06:00.000-07:00

(Pictured in craptacular 300 kPixel glory: storefront Indian in San Antonio, TX)

I just saved a bunch of money . . . Part 2

2007-09-01T12:47:00.001-07:00

(Pictured in craptacular 300 kPixel glory: gecko in San Antonio, TX ... and some doofus in a hat)

I just saved a bunch of money on my car insurance

2007-09-01T12:43:00.001-07:00

(Pictured in craptacular 300 kPixel glory: San Antonio, TX, gecko)

I've had to endure many things in the line of work . . .

2007-08-31T10:46:00.001-07:00

. . . but smooth jazz takes the cake.

(Pictured in craptacular 300 kPixel glory: Guitars & Saxes 2007)

But it got worse: I also had to endure one of the members of this smooth jazz supergroup espousing his love of Jesus.

Welcome to San Antonio!

2007-08-27T12:27:00.001-07:00

Yes, that's a one-eyed woman dressed like a cross between a cowgirl and a Wal-Mart greeter at the San Antonio airport.

Churchill and Iraq

2007-08-23T12:06:00.001-07:00

Since those on the right have been repeatedly invoking the metaphors of Churchill and Chamberlain (the warrior versus the appeaser - or in "talking points" lingo, "stay the course" versus "cut and run") to describe their skewed perspective on our current Mesopotamian military misfortune, I find it amusing to discover Churchill's perspective on Iraq in 1922:

I am deeply concerned about Iraq . . . I think we should now put definitely, not only to Feisal but to the Constituent Assembly, the position that unless they beg us to stay and to stay on our own terms in regard to efficient control, we shall actually evacuate before the close of the financial year. I would put this issue in the most brutal way, and if they are not prepared to urge us to stay and to co-operate in every manner I would actually clear out. That at any rate would be a solution . . . At present we are paying eight millions a year for the privilege of living on an ungrateful volcano out of which we are in no circumstances to get anything worth having.

Hat tip goes to Mahablog.

Damn it feels good to be a blogga!

2007-08-22T09:43:00.001-07:00

This scene from Miller's Crossing gets my vote for "most gangster moment in film," beating out the "say hello to my little friend" scene in Scarface, because Albert Finney's Leo is so gangster he walks away from automatic weapon battle unscathed. That and it's all set to "Danny Boy." Genius!

I haven't posted in a while. And the way work is going, I won't be blogging much still for the next couple weeks at least.

Kansas City says 'Wash yo' hands!'

2007-08-14T16:36:00.000-07:00

Live from Kansas City...

2007-08-11T18:24:00.001-07:00

Ladies and gentlemen- Arthur Bryant's BBQ!

The missing 'd' is for 'Vitamin D Deficiency!'

2007-07-28T11:41:00.000-07:00

Ralph's at Hazeltine and Ventura, Sherman Oaks.

An Oldie but Goodie

2007-07-27T14:36:00.000-07:00

I always get a big smile from this one. I don't know who to give initial credit for this, 'cuz it's all over the damn Internets and it dates back to 2004 at the latest.

No more reliable newspapers left

2007-07-27T09:49:00.000-07:00

That's right folks, "the world's only reliable newspaper," the Weekly World News, will no longer be producing a print edition. I first got word of this from NPR's Morning Edition on Wednesday, but apparently repressed the memory until the Onion brought the painful news into my consciousness last night. This news weighs heavy on my heart, as the WWN played an important role in my adolescence, during which the walls of my bedroom were plastered with headlines such as "The Ghost of Elvis Got Me off Drugs!" and "Bible Expert's Shocking Claim: Satan Is Gay!" Then, of course, there is Bat Boy, pictured here, apparently distressed at the news that his visage will no longer be sighted at supermarket checkout aisles, for no other paper has the mettle to publish such important stories.

I leave with you with a couple of my favorite images from the WWN:

Guy Finds a "Free Lung" Coupon in a Pack of Cigarettes!

Are James Carville & Bat Boy Kin? - Blood Test Will Prove It

The Ol' Ball 'n' Chain

2007-07-25T13:04:00.001-07:00

Wrecking ball on flatbed truck, sighted on 101 South at Woodman Ave.

Scream, Cleveland, Scream!

2007-07-24T22:45:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow night! 7:30 PM at Hollywood's world-famous Egyptian Theatre! See the world premiere of Cleveland's Screaming, a documentary about the Northeast Ohio punk scene of the early 80's, produced and directed by everyone's favorite punk-rock Zen master, Brad Warner. It'll be followed by Screaming Masterpiece, about contemporary Icelandic music (which appears to go beyond Björk and even Sigur Rós), which was neither directed nor produced by Brad Warner. Warner Roshi himself will be on hand for discussion between the two films.

For those that don't already know, I am a big fan of Brad's book Hardcore Zen (although I haven't yet obtained his newest, Sit Down and Shut Up) and I attend his Saturday zazen classes semi-regularly (you might even say spasmodically). Brad was also the bassist of Zero Defex (0DFX), an early 80's hardcore band from Akron, so clearly the film is an insider's retrospective.

Here's an excerpt from the press release that pretty much sums up the film's mission:

Don Letts’ PUNK: ATTITUDE examined punk as a worldwide phenomenon. Paul Rachman’s AMERICAN HARDCORE looked at the hardcore scene in the USA. But the real American hardcore scene was a truly local phenomenon. All across the USA every city had its own scene with its own unique character and its own tale to tell. Stories about the scenes in L.A., D.C. and New York have been done to death. It’s time we got to know what was happening in the rest of America.

And here's a trailer:

For more info about the film, check out Brad's Cleveland's Screaming blog, which contains lots of video clips.

Be there, or don't! [EDIT: I didn't make it, by the way. The proverbial things came up.]

Hobo Matters

2007-07-23T15:23:00.000-07:00

Thought Video Monday was finished, did you? I couldn't leave without posting this thoughtful, poignant documentary about the little-known Hobo Wars during the Great Depression. Americans are seldom taught the truth about this important time in history, but if we forget our history, we shall be doomed to repeat it, hobos and all. John Hodgman illuminates this obscure chapter from the 20th Century in this, a chapter from The Areas of My Expertise set to stock footage of the elusive beings known as Hobos. God bless you, John Hodgman!

Tip o' th' hat to Hobotopia for the link.

Q. How many bloggers does it take to change a lightbulb?

2007-07-23T11:53:00.000-07:00

A: Only one, but when has that ever stopped us?

From Ted Barlow's Lightbulb Joke Warehouse, compiled in 2003.

My favorite:

Q: How many libertarians does it take to change a lightbulb?

A: None, the invisible hand will do it.

Misheard Lyric Triple Threat!

2007-07-23T10:14:00.000-07:00

I almost fell out of my chair watching these:

Interpretation of Christina Aguilera's "Ain't No Other Man":

Interpretation of AFI's "Silver and Cold":

Interpretation of Fall Out Boy's "This Ain't a Scene. . .":

If you can't read and listen at the same time, I can't help you. If you don't "get" these, I pity you.

Once again, tip o' th' hat to Howie Pyro and his demented sense of humor for pointing me at the first video, and YouTube's good grouping methods for pointing me at the others.

Video Monday continues right along...

2007-07-23T10:04:00.000-07:00

This cannot really be explained:

I mean, I can tell you that this is a video of "1,500 plus CPDRC inmates of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center, Cebu, Philippines" doing a well-choreographed interpretation of Michael Jackson's "Thriller". I can even tell you that there's a Filipino dude with male pattern baldness in drag playing the sole female role of the number. This just doesn't seem to quite capture the mind-blowing experience that is watching the above video. If you enjoyed that, be sure and check out the other videos of CPDRC dance numbers, including two from Sister Act(!!!), from the same YouTube poster.

Another gift from my friend Howie Pyro, a sick, sick man. Listen to his show on Tuesday night!

Kelly Clarkson goes HARDCORE!

2007-07-23T09:58:00.001-07:00

Just enjoy:

Big thanks to my friend Howie Pyro for the tip off.

Video Monday!

2007-07-23T09:48:00.000-07:00

Let's start things off with some rockin' economists!

This take on The Police's "I'll Be Watching You" was created by students at Columbia Business School. Here's what it says at YouTube: "Columbia Business School's Dean Glenn Hubbard sings about wanting Alan Greenspan's job that went instead to New Fed Chair Ben Bernanke." Seriously, what the fuck? I love geeks with a good sense of humor! (Probably because I am one.)

Tip o' th' hat to The Annals of Improbable Research for bringing this... thing... to my attention.

Obama really isn't black!

2007-07-19T14:56:00.001-07:00

I guess Debra Dickerson was right. This recent picture from the New York Daily News proves it (click to view larger, and pay attention to the photo's caption):

(Via Regret the Error via Language Log - hat tip t' both!)

Norway

2007-07-18T11:10:00.001-07:00

American Norwegians live in little prairie towns where health care is the main industry because everybody's old and their main asset is their home, which isn't worth what it was because the town is shrinking because old people have a tendency to die. Their ancestors took a wrong turn. They had no idea America would fall into the hands of a failed oilman who would waste the country's pension money on a war for oil while Norway, the world's most peaceful country, enjoys a very sensible prosperity. They've voted twice to stay out of the European Union. Why mess with success?

So ends Garrison Keillor's column this week (read the rest of it with the link). As a descendant of the huge Norwegian emigration to America of the 1800's (Norway gave up more citizens to the US than any country besides Ireland), someone who visited the country last year (that's my photo), and someone who recently saw Sicko, it really struck a chord with me. Frankly, Sicko made me grateful I have dual citizenship with Ireland (and as such, an EU citizen as well), as the life of an ex-pat is becoming increasingly tempting as time goes on.

Anyhow, I really just wanted to share this article with you, but while I'm here, I'll share some photos from last year's trip:

Nationaltheater, which I think translates to "federal playhouse" or something

Norse mythology! You know, it's that story where the naked guy shot the other naked guy with an arrow while trying to do a William Tell act because this large, swarthy fellow was distracting him.

Cannons!

"Don't start fires but feel free to load cannonballs into your dog!"

The entire Norwegian army!

Socialism!

Man-boobs!

Fred=Peace, and as we all know, all Freds are peaceful folk.

Norwegian Parliament Building

Ummm... err... Parliament again

I guess these silver robot men are everywhere

As are these

And these

One of thousands of double rainbows

One of thousands of waterfalls

One of thousands of glaciers (and fjords)

One of a bazillion troll statues

Traditional home of Sami people, which many Nordic Norwegians derogatorily refer to as "Laplanders" ~~and use their stereotypes as mascots~~. [EDIT: Here's how they depict the Inuits of Greenland also:]
Sound familiar?

Oh yeah, then there's the whaling and the seal-clubbing and all. Well, nowhere's perfect.

Nerd Alert!

2007-07-15T12:19:00.000-07:00

Want to be an astronomy assistant from the safety and comfort of your home or office? (Disclaimer: Colinski in no way endorses non-work-related Internet use at work.) Well now you can! Through the Galaxy Zoo website, you can help Oxford University catalog the thousands of galaxies made visible through the long-term scanning efforts of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Because the human brain is still superior to computers in this sort of thing, they want thousands of people to log on and help. All it takes is to look at a pictures of galaxies and say whether they're elliptical, spiral, or something else. And here's the kicker: "these images were taken by a robotic telescope and processed automatically, so the odds are that when you log on, that first galaxy you see will be one that no human has seen before."

Cool, eh?

Finally! Something useful on the Internet!

2007-07-14T17:05:00.000-07:00

Someone has compiled a database of customer service lines, with company-specific directions on how exactly to bypass automated menus and get a live human being on the phone. Thanks, anonymous Internet stranger, whoever you are!

Picture of the Day

2007-07-14T16:34:00.000-07:00

Was there really a time when people wouldn't find sexual connotation here, or was this to put one over on the censors of the day? I mean, look at the look that kid's giving him! There's something so, so wrong about this whole thing.

Video Friday: Gratuitous Anthropomorphizing

2007-07-13T12:12:00.000-07:00

What I really want to know is, what the hell was this otter doing when this wildlife peeping tom filmed it? Clearly, he's not really grooving to ~~The Black-Eyed Peas~~Outkast, no matter how convincing YouTube tries to make it (Damn You, Tube!) Any thoughts?

Anyhoo, this made me literally laugh out loud (again, I will not cheapen it with an insincere abbreviation as most people don't really mean it) so I had to share it today folks. Because I love you. I do.

Quote of the Day

2007-07-13T09:57:00.000-07:00

"If America’s so bad, why does everyone want to be here?" His answer: "When you’re here, you’re less likely to be a victim of American foreign policy."

- Diane Lefer from "The Prosperity of Cities and Desert Places"
via LA Taco

Stuff on OUR cat!

2007-07-11T23:18:00.000-07:00

My adopted daughter Mia (pictured, lower-center of photo) has finally made the cut to be featured on Stuff on my Cat! Buried in toys. She's a spoiled one, she is. Her mom can't say no to her.

What about Raptor Jesus?

2007-07-11T12:37:00.000-07:00

The Campaign to Defend the Constitution recently released a poll suggesting that 54% of Americans believe that the exhibits at Answers in Genesis' Creation Museum in Kentucky are either "scientifically unsound," "bizarre" or "Biblically inaccurate." In fact, even 49% of white evangelical voters describe the museum's exhibits as such.

Reason to abandon cynicism about the state of our nation? Maybe, maybe not: that same poll also suggest that 53% of voters believe that the story of Genesis is the literal story of the creation of life, the universe, and everything, and that this happened about 6,000 years ago (about 4,000 years or more after the "neolithic revolution" saw organized agriculture begin in the Middle East and elsewhere). Compare that to 11% who believe in unguided natural selection (and the slightly larger 14% who buy into intelligent design, despite ID being perceived by many creationists as a way to force their beliefs into public education). I remain optimistically cynical about the future of our society.

The full poll results can be viewed here.

If Iran Were America . . .

2007-07-10T23:27:00.001-07:00

. . . and We Were Iran.
This well-done timeline of U.S.-Iran relations, starting from the 1953 coup CIA-backed coup that set off the modern history of my government's less-than-benvolent dealings in Iran, only with roles reversed. It is rounded out with a lot of great links backing up the storyline.

Being willing to see the world in shades of gray rather than black and white does not make someone an apologist. Rather, unwavering, unquestioning support of "us vs. them" mentality will mean no end to world conflict. Alas, I doubt many anti-Iran hardliners would be swayed by this article. You can't graft new ideas on a closed mind.

Big tip o' the hat to Haley for bringing this to my attention!

Another celebrity breakup

2007-07-10T15:26:00.000-07:00

It seems that Uncle Ben and Aunt Jemima (pictured here in happier times) have split up. This comes on the heels of Ben's recent promotion from "fictional cook to fictional CEO of the fictional Uncle Ben's Inc." After Jemima stuck by him all these years, one can only hope she will get a good settlement.

War sacrifice

2007-07-10T14:54:00.001-07:00

Stumbling across a collection of old government-sponsored ads from World War II reminded me of the stark differences in what was asked of the American people during that war and what the Bush regime is asking of us during the current business in Iraq.

Look at how many ads this site has trying to get people to curb their spending. The consistent message in WWII was that we're all in this together, and we all must sacrifice together. Compare that to Bush's insistence that we should just go about our daily lives and pretend the war isn't even happening. To Bush, it's enough sacrifice for us to watch the disturbing news about this fiasco on TV every night. Of course, this is a clear attempt to keep people detached from the mess we're involved in by removing personal involvement. This detachment is why Sicko is probably going to be way more successful at influencing public dialogue than Fahrenheit 9/11 was - people are going to see the clear connection to their own interests when it comes to our fucked-up healthcare system, as opposed to our fucked-up war (which, admittedly, we seem to be coming around on, just not quickly enough).

On a side note, a parallel I've observed lately is how little we've been hearing about the droughts in the western U.S. Compared to the milder droughts of the 80's and 90's in Southern California, this time there's little talk of people curbing their water waste. I grew up hearing the constant message of conservation ("don't water your sidewalks!"), which died out in the last decade and is only now starting to creep back into the public dialogue, 8 years into our current situation. Just keep your head in the sand, and it'll go away...

Coincidence?

2007-07-10T13:56:00.002-07:00

(click to enlarge)

Rather unsettling synchronicity in today's New York Times, where Andre Lugovoi, accused of the polonium-210 poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, is pictured wearing cufflinks bearing a creepy resemblance to the Hoodia Patch pictured on the opposite side of the same page. Is this a random occurrence, or is contextual advertising getting smarter? Are there software algorithms identifying images and matching them to ads with similar shapes and colors? Can we really know for sure either way? It's a brave new world, children...

Golly!

2007-07-10T09:35:00.001-07:00

Tip o' the hat to Thighs Wide Shut for linking to the Slate slideshow of the evolution of racist imagery in advertising through the years. Perhaps most notable and disturbing is the "gollywog" (seen at left advertising "Golden Shred" marmalade) of British origin, borrowed from American minstrel imagery but exaggerated beyond even U.S. blackface themes. It also stands out because due to my Irish-born mother I grew up with a Rupert Bear book, which featured a character known as "The Golliwog" (or was it "Gollywog"? - seen at right) whose appearance was so cartooned I didn't even really recognize that it was meant to be a caricature of Blacks. It looked more like an anthropomorphized hedgehog to me. My mother had a golliwog doll when she grew up, and it was just like a teddy bear to her. Anyone who knows my mother knows she's a staunch liberal and supporter of civil rights, but when you ask her about her golliwog she'll get all tender remembering the grotesque little racist icon she used to cuddle with as a girl. What a bizarre world we live in.

The mysteries of the quantum Cheneyverse!

2007-07-08T23:33:00.000-07:00

Check out this week's new This Modern World. I gotta hand it to Tom Tomorrow; it's hard to mix physics and politics in a comic and still have it come out funny. I must admit I did literally Laugh Out Loud, rather than the Laughing Quietly To Myself that most people really do when they write "LOL". However, I suppose I should give a disclaimer: if you know nothing about quantum physics or current political events, don't get angry with me if you don't get the strip. It's only for nurds like me and my ~~legions of adoring fans~~ friends.

If you're not a Salon subscriber, and don't have the patience to sit through a brief ad, but strangely do have the patience to wait until Tuesday at noon to read the aforementioned strip ad-free, you can do so at Working for Change.

Wayne 'The Train' Hancock @ Safari Sam's

2007-07-08T23:04:00.001-07:00

(Pictured in craptacular 300kPixel glory [L-R] Jake, Wayne, Eddie)

Safari Sam's
5214 W Sunset Blvd
Hollywood, CA 90027
Approx. 10pm, 8 July 2007
Wayne Hancock's music on MySpace

[Edit]: Wayne wanted everyone to know that he had canceled his gig at this past Saturday's Hootenanny six months ago, and said anyone who showed up there expecting him (as he was and is still shown on the festival poster) should demand their money back

Slim Cessna's Auto Club at Safari Sam's

2007-07-08T22:58:00.001-07:00

(Pictured in craptacular 300 kPixel glory: [L-R] Slim & Munly)

Safari Sam's
5214 W Sunset Blvd
Hollywood, CA 90027
Approx. 9pm, 8 July 2007
S.C.A.C.'s music on MySpace

Chinatownland

2007-07-07T18:24:00.000-07:00

Kwik-E-Mart Burbank Friday 11pm

2007-07-07T01:58:00.001-07:00

[Edit: Captured in craptacular 300 kPixel glory: line down W. Olive Ave.]

Still a hellish line. Still I must delay Squishie gratification.

Video Friday, Final Post: Impeach Cheney

2007-07-06T23:41:00.000-07:00

New video by Robert Greenwald. Also check out the connected website and sign the petition. A new poll by American Research Group suggests that 54% of Americans now favor impeaching Cheney. Jump on the bandwagon already! I'm going out on a limb for you folks; I'll probably be on a no-fly list now. But I do it 'cause I love you.

Video Friday continues

2007-07-06T15:30:00.000-07:00

We'll see if this begins a running tradition. Probably not. But anyhow, I give you the preview for Michael Bay's next take on 80's kids shows, My Little Pony

(From iKlipz via Defamer)

Giuliani's got balls - New video of the week

2007-07-06T14:37:00.000-07:00

Wait, this is a joke, right?

Video of the week

2007-07-06T12:26:00.000-07:00

Live From Congress: Rep. Ingersoll's Murder of a Hobo, courtesy of America's finest news source.

Now I get the hype!

2007-07-05T10:01:00.000-07:00

A refreshing candidacy announcement

2007-07-04T22:56:00.001-07:00

LISA SIMPSON 2008!

Fireworks for Independence Day

2007-07-04T18:00:00.001-07:00

Enjoy.