2012 archive
Hot-Dogging Calories 0
New York Mayor Bloomberg’s crusade against Big Soda has been much in the news.
William Saletan wonders how Mayor Mike squares that with his curious fascination with gluttony for glory. A nugget:
Year after year, Bloomberg officiates at the weighing-in ceremony, praises the contestants for gorging themselves, and brags about the millions of people watching on TV.
Facebook Frolics, Facebook Is Weird and Creepy Dept. 0
My friend went to a travel website to investigate flights to Europe.
Upon connecting, she was presented with a message that said, “Welcome back, [name], thanks for visiting.”
She said, “I’ve never been here before” (and a few other things).
I looked up from editing the pictures in the previous post and saw that the site was displaying her Facebook profile picture. Clearly, the site was reading one of those long-term Facebook stalker cookies.
You know, really, this is not right. It is corporate cyber-stalking. It is evil.
Opsail 2012 Norfolk 0
Second Son is in town with the Pride of Baltimore II, so I went over to Norfolk Harbor to join him at Opsail. Here are a few shots; there will be more during the week as I get them edited. (I posted pictures of the Pride II once before.)
The Voter Fraud Fraud 0
In the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Tony Norman summarizes the history of attempts to restrict the franchise. He starts with the colonial period, in which only land-holders could vote, and works his way through poll taxes and literacy tests up to today. If you are unfamiliar with the history of the franchise, his article is a good three-minute cram course.
He reminds us:
Of course, oh yes, certainly, yes-indeedy-do.
Facebook Frolics 2
All ur status upd8tes r belongz to us:
According to the broadcaster, SCHUFA plans to use Google-like crawlers to scoop up information available on the sites. “The goal of the project is to analyze and research web data,” the agency said in a short statement on Thursday.
German politicians and citizens are not taking this quietly.
Germany has strict laws about internet privacy (remember the great Google street view fuss). Follow the link to Der Spiegel for a roundup of comments from all sides of the spectrum.
Lies and Lying Liars, Reprise 3
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
I had a 2-S and was damned glad I did. I remember sophomore year sitting in a dark dorm room with several of my friends listening to the first modern draft lottery on the radio. We all wanted to know our numbers.
Mine was 349. I could relax for the first time since I registered (somewhere I still have my card).
No one wants to die for a lie, and that’s what the Vietnamese War was, a Great and Glorious Patriotic War for a Lie.
Not the first, certainly not the last, just another of many.
The old lie; the young die.
Lies and Lying Liars 0
Dick Polman rounds up Mitt the Flip’s latest whoppers. A nugget:
Follow the link for the rest.
QOTD 0
Robert Fulghum, from the Quotemaster (subscribe here):
Above all, if what you’ve done is stupid, but it works, it ain’t stupid.
Circus, No Bread 0
Bob Molinaro, in the local rag:
’nuff said.
Peacock Alley 0
Peacocks terrorize Crisfield, Maryland.
But even though the birds are beautiful, they may be … well, bird-brained.
Phoebus said the male gets aggressive when he sees his own reflection.
“I’ve seen him fighting with the side of my car,” he said.
When I was growing up, my Great Uncle Henry Wise, whom everyone called “Brother Henry,” had some peacocks. They are thoroughly unpleasant companions.
Twits on Twitter 0
Twits at 37,000 feet.
Honestly, you can’t make this stuff up (and, since the internet is a public place, you don’t have to).
Stray Thought 0
Washing machines are installed. Art just is.
They Aren’t Even Trying To Hide It Anymore* 0
The Republican Southern Strategy continues apace.
These are not nice people.
Via Contradict Me, to whom I refer you for commentary.
_____________________
*Well, they are. They are trying to say that this is somehow not racist.
You Are What You Eat 0
And you are not very pretty.
Fresh Air considers what you eat. From the recap:
Chicken litter is exactly what it sounds like: a mix of chicken manure, dead chickens, feathers, and spilled feed that has been rendered down into a uniform substance and then marketed to the beef industry as cheap feed for cows.
“Obviously, it’s going to be cheaper than corn or soy or other things that they feed cows,” says Philpott. “So a rather significant amount of this stuff ends up being mixed into cow rations and fed to cows. … But chickens are fed various beef products [throughout their lives]. … And then what you’re getting is cows eating cow protein, which as Americans probably remember, is the source of the mad cow scares.”
Follow the link to read the rest of the story and the transcript or to listen to the audio.
If you can stomach it.
Dustbiters 0
The FDIC has awaken from its slumbers and is hungry. This evening, it has snacked on these:
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Carolina Federal Savings Bank, Charleston, South Carolina
First Capital Bank, Kingfisher, Oklahoma