February 2010
“Mr. [J.D.] Salinger was like the Batman icon. Everyone knew Batman existed, and...”
– Mike Ackerman, owner of the Cornish General Store, to The New York Times on how the people of Cornish, NH helped J.D. keep his privacy.
The 60 Minutes/Vanity Fair Poll
Americans like their employees honest, their catch phrases escapist, and their Constitution just the way it is, thank you. WEB EXCLUSIVE January 31, 2010
F.Scott Fitzgerald once observed that the mark of a first-class intelligence is the ability to hold in one’s mind two contradictory ideas at the same time. By this measure, the average American is Spinoza. On the one hand, we have little...
January 2010
Leonardo da Vinci's resume | kottke
From the Codex Atlanticus, this is a letter that Leonardo da Vinci wrote in 1482 to the Duke of Milan advertising his services as a “skilled contriver of instruments of war”. From the translation:
6. I have means by secret and tortuous mines and ways, made without noise, to reach a designated spot, even if it were needed to pass under a trench or a river.
So, Leonardo was...
Populism: Just Like Racism!
by Matt Taibbi | True/Slant
“It’s easy to see why politicians would be drawn to the populist pose. First, it makes everything so simple. The economic crisis was caused by a complex web of factors, including global imbalances caused by the rise of China. But with the populist narrative, you can just blame Goldman Sachs.”
via Op-Ed Columnist – The Populist Addiction – NYTimes.com.
...
J.D. Salinger, RIP →
The 2:30 A.M. Nobel Prize Call
Apparently,...
“I don’t think American elections should be bankrolled by America’s...”
– POTUS @ SOTU
Simon - Technology Entrepreneur and Potential...
Mildly NSFW
From: Simon Edhouse Date: Monday 16 November 2009 2.19pm To: David Thorne Subject: Logo Design Hello David, I would like to catch up as I am working on a really exciting project at the moment and need a logo designed. Basically something representing peer to peer networking. I have to have something to show prospective clients this week so would you be able to pull something...
Ruined Mamilla | Palestine Monitor
Ma’man Allah Cemetery, also know as Mamilla Cemetery, is a thousand-year-old Muslim graveyard located in what is now central Jerusalem. Originally covering an area of 180 dunums (one dunum being equivalent to a quarter acre), 70% of its graves were obliterated to make way for a park, named Independence. The Palestine Monitor takes a look at what’s left of Ma’man Allah Cemetery.
...
Lessig on Political Corruption in America
Public confidence in the U.S. House and Senate is at an all-time low, and, after last week’s Supreme Court decision, it’s bound to sink even lower. On January 19th (the day before the decision), Harvard law professor Lawrence Lessig returned to Stanford and highlighted the degree to which “institutional corruption” — in the form of lobbyists and corporate influence — pervades Congress,...
WatchMaya Lin - Unchopping a Tree on Vimeo
"No Kicking Penguins"
An autistic Canadian second-grader has created a meme that has traveled to Antarctica, where scientists in a British research facility have posted the image and declared it to be “official policy in Antarctica.”
In October, [Michelle Chipman] was walking down the hall when she kicked an inflatable penguin — which had been won at the Regatta — out of her way. Seven-year-old Colby… promptly...
“The second reason is that, to my eye and ear at least, most of the shows are...”
– Nick Carr | Conan Online – From Rising Star to Just Another Ginger Cat on a Roomba
“The pro-life movement is pro-women, and it empowers women with the message that we are strong enough and smart enough to be able to pursue education, vocations and avocations while giving life to a child.” —When Sarah Palin puts it that way, it makes me think maybe I’ve been completely wrong on the whole abortion issue. Oh, wait, no it doesn’t, because that’s not...
“Scott Brown Wins Mass. Race, Giving GOP 41-59 Majority in the Senate.”
– The Village Voice
The Secret History of Typography in the Oxford...
by Nick Martens | The Bygone Bureau
Nick Martens digs into the pages of the great dictionary that chronicles the history and development of the English language, and unearths some typographic gems. To those who would say that there is nothing “secret” about the publicly available Oxford English Dictionary, or that browsing said publication’s website for an hour hardly...
WatchKim and Balfie.
Vancouver had better be ready for these two.
What Would Martin Luther King Make of Twitter?
by Baratunde Thurston
At this time every year, commentators across the United States engage in an exercise I’ll call Hypothetical King, in which we try to imagine what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. would say about the war in Afghanistan, the bank bailouts, or Mo’Nique winning best supporting actress for Precious at the Golden Globes. We extrapolate from his words and deeds and hope...
Dear Pat Robertson, I know that you know that all press is good press, so I appreciate the shout-out. And you make God look like a big mean bully who kicks people when they are down, so I’m all over that action. But when you say that Haiti has made a pact with me, it is totally humiliating. I may be evil incarnate, but I’m no welcher. The way you put it, making a deal with me leaves...
