Heuresis

"You know, there are certain days that remind me of why I ran for this office. And then there are..."

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:54:43 -0500

“You know, there are certain days that remind me of why I ran for this office. And then there are moments like this, where I pardon a turkey and send it to Disneyland.”

-
Barack Obama, remarks on pardoning the National Thanksgiving Turkey (Nov. 25, 2009). (via supposenot)

Mr. Bacon’s Big Adventure Board Game: “It’s a...

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 23:28:09 -0500

Mr. Bacon’s Big Adventure Board Game: “It’s a Mad Dash through Meatland on Your Way to the Frying Pan!” ($20 from Archie McPhee & Co.)

“Can Ants Count?” Apparently, yes, in the sense they...

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:32:25 -0500

“Can Ants Count?” Apparently, yes, in the sense they seem to have little pedometers in their heads. From NPR’s Morning Edition. This is one of the most amusing things I’ve seen all evening.

Why I love Facebook.

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:12:14 -0500

Why I love Facebook.

oliver-sirens on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:08:59 -0500

oliver-sirens on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Barry Underwood, “Bow Falls” (photo, 2009). Part of...

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 22:35:20 -0500

Barry Underwood, “Bow Falls” (photo, 2009). Part of the exhibition “Earth Engines” at Johannson Projects (visit the exhibition page for more). Spotted at BLDGBLOG.

One of my absolute favorite pieces of political comedy from SNL,...

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 13:33:29 -0500

One of my absolute favorite pieces of political comedy from SNL, from October 1984. Jesse Jackson doing the parody political gameshow, “The Question is Moot.” Watch this, and soon you’ll find yourself intoning, “The question is moot!” at odd moments, and no one will get the joke but you.

Alissa Rubin of the NYT interviews a female suicide bomber in Iraq

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 23:06:59 -0500

Alissa Rubin of the NYT interviews a female suicide bomber in Iraq:

This is pretty effing chilling, is all I can say.

Bestest Friend: So, how are you getting to Chicago? Did you decide to drive? Blogger: No, no! I’m...

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:15:58 -0500

Bestest Friend: So, how are you getting to Chicago? Did you decide to drive?
Blogger: No, no! I’m going to fly! Isn’t that cool?
Bestest Friend: Wow! You are going to fly?
Blogger: Yes! Yes I am!
Bestest Friend:
Blogger: And I’m not nervous at all!
Bestest Friend: Good!
Blogger: Last time I flew I had to take a mild sedative…or five…but I don’t think I’m even going to need it this time!
Bestest Friend: Very good!
Blogger: I was reading through Flying Without Fear and really, there is no reason to worry! Flying is more safe than, well, than sitting in this room with you! Why, at any second, a meteor could crash through the roof and kill us both!
Bestest Friend: So true!
Blogger: Yup! No fear at all!
Bestest Friend: So what times are your flights?
Blogger: Well, I leave Philly around noon and it’s only an hour and a half flight to Chicago.
Bestest Friend: That will be easy!
Blogger: Oh sure, yuppers! Then I leave Chicago on Sunday morning, bright and early. I’ll have to be at the airport by 5:30 AM to get on my flight.
Bestest Friend: So you’ll probably just stay up all night?
Blogger: Yes, I’m thinking of it! Should be easy! Party, party, party!
Bestest Friend: Till the morning light! Party, party, party!
Blogger: Whoo-hoo!
Bestest Friend: Then you can crash on the plane!
Blogger:
Best Friend: I mean…
Blogger:
Friend: I mean, you know… “crash”… meaning “sleep”?
Blogger:
Friend:
Blogger: I’m going to need a quart of vodka to wash down the tranquilizers.
Friend: At least a quart.

From Haluski.

News from Nepal: preparations underway for world's largest mass animal sacrifice

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:04:46 -0500

News from Nepal: preparations underway for world's largest mass animal sacrifice:

From The Himalayan Times, some information about logistical preparation for Ghadimai fair (Nov. 24 and 25), which is the site of what is thought to be the world's largest mass slaughter of sacrificial animals (mostly goats, buffalo, and fowl). 250 butchers have been appointed as official slaughterers, a stadium-sized structure for the simultaneous killing of 10,000 buffalo has been erected, and a 3-km wide stretch of land has been set aside for the butchering.

Teenager calls police after his parents confiscate his Xbox

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:09:43 -0500

Teenager calls police after his parents confiscate his Xbox:

Today's entry from the what-is-the-world-coming-to dept.

Bad news for Mississippi's black colleges

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:22:17 -0500

Bad news for Mississippi's black colleges:

It looks like the end might be in sight for several of Mississippi's HBCUs. In the wake of the 1992 US v. Fordice decision — which, ironically, represented an attempt to undo the historic effects of the state's segregated higher education system — they were starved of funds, receiving less than 3% of the budget they were allotted. They are now being condemned as non-performers (surprise, surprise) and will probably undergo massive program cuts.

"With remarkable economy of prose, Palin cast health care reform as an assault on the country, put a..."

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 21:58:46 -0500

“With remarkable economy of prose, Palin cast health care reform as an assault on the country, put a face on its supposed victims (her baby Trig), coined the expression “death panel” (linking it directly to Obama), raised the specter of euthanasia in the service of a state-run economy, and rallied the troops around a fight against “evil.” In short, she personalized, popularized, and polarized the debate. Never mind that Democratic health care reform bills merely funded optional end-of-life consultations that had heretofore been almost universally acknowledged as a good. (Indeed, Palin herself once championed them in Alaska.)”

- Richard Kim and Betsy Reed, “Introduction,” in Going Rouge: An American Nightmare, ed. by Richard Kim and Betsy Reed (n.p., OR Books, 2009), online here, discussing Palin’s famous Facebook post from August 7, 2009. Thanks to Danielle for posting a link to this article.

Photo

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:57:09 -0500

Cooling towers, Limerick Generating Station, Limerick, PA, seen...

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:55:28 -0500

Cooling towers, Limerick Generating Station, Limerick, PA, seen from the access road to Philadelphia Premium Outlets (I took this).

Final page of Montaigne’s essay, “Of...

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 23:56:07 -0500

Final page of Montaigne’s essay, “Of cannibals,” ending with the question: “All this would not be too bad, but what’s the use? They don’t wear breeches. (Tout cela ne va pas trop mal: mais quoy, ils ne portent point de haut de chausses.)” Page image taken from the 1588 Paris edition of the Essais; this is p. 90 verso. Source image is here; French text is here; modern English translation is here.

"Most sophisticated computer attack ever" drains $9M from over 2000 ATMs at once

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:20:51 -0500

"Most sophisticated computer attack ever" drains $9M from over 2000 ATMs at once:

Four hackers in Russia, Estonia, and Moldova orchestrate a global attack on an ATM network, stealing over nine million US dollars from over two thousand ATMs in 280 cities on three continents, all within twelve hours. As a postscript, three of the accused hackers have now been apprehended and will be tried either in the US or in their home countries. Thanks to Rob M. for posting.

Dan Wasserman, “Dems and women (editorial cartoon),”...

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:44:48 -0500

Dan Wasserman, “Dems and women (editorial cartoon),” from Out of Line, Boston Globe (Nov. 10, 2009).

"The thing, of course, that plagues the whole issue… is that human rights are in fact invested..."

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 21:51:13 -0500

“The thing, of course, that plagues the whole issue… is that human rights are in fact invested in states, which have their national interests. They are also dependent on the interests of the great powers. Who could, who would dare, to bring the United States or any of its government officers to justice for having violated human rights? The United States… [is] protected from responsibility to human rights. It’s more than a matter of failing to live up to an ideal. It is the way in which human rights are continuously inserted into power politics, the power politics of states, that worries me.”

- Talal Asad, from “Islam, Human Rights, and the Secular,” a public conversation with Abdullahi An-Naim at the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, Sept. 29, 2009. Transcript here (PDF).

A man is lifted off his feet by a gust of wind on the beach at...

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 21:28:08 -0500

A man is lifted off his feet by a gust of wind on the beach at Hurst Point, Dorset

Photo: Steve Poole/Rex Features, in the Guardian.