So, I really have nothing to add to this. (Via Daily Kos)
Category Archives: culture
The Republican Giving Tree
Awesome DIY advice from Star Tips and Chizzy
So, what are you doing to save money during the recession? I certainly hope you haven’t been cutting back on being fabulous! But, just in case, “Star Tips” proves you don’t have to.
I haven’t been able to sort out what magazine these images are from, despite a full forty-five seconds on the Google. (Maybe Chat, but maybe not. If you know, please leave it in the comments.) The premise seems to be that readers send in their own money-saving tips. And, if your tip is awesome enough, Charlie and Lizzy (plural: “Chizzy”) will take a photo of themselves trying it out.
You should view the whole gallery, but here are a few of the choicer tips.
Plus, when you duck out of the “posh do” to freshen up in the ladies room, you can exfoliate! |
Would make nice earrings, too! |
In mine, every third post-it would say “Recalculating . . .” and would take five minutes to pull off the steering wheel. |
Or, encourage your guests to eat lots and lots of mints, and enjoy the ensuing unicorn vomit. Plus, is toothpaste really cheaper than mints? Really? |
This is my personal favorite. Sally Thomas of Stoke-on-Trent, we are all thrilled with your 3D hat picture! |
Find your sole-mate at seaHarmony
So, have you been trying online dating sites, only to be disappointed when you keep getting set up with other humans? Well, saddle up your seahorse, Romeo.
seaHarmony, because those other dating sites are just so species specific.
via Joanne Manaster.
The Day the LOLCats Died
So, you’ve probably heard about, or may already be experiencing the partial internet blackout to draw attention to and protest SOPA/PIPA, the MPAA/RIAA lobbyist written and funded sibling bills that aim to fuck up the internet for everyone by basically handing censorship authority over to corporations in the name of protecting intellectual property.
Enjoy this. Then call your damn Senators!
Read more from the Electronic Frontier Foundation here.
Twitter Revolutions, Reformation Style
So, a couple of weeks ago, the Economist ran an interesting article on Martin Luther and the Reformation, arguing that the social media of the day (inexpensive mass production of pamphlets) played a crucial role in fueling the spread of Luther’s ideas. It’s a fun read, full of interesting history, with parallels drawn to the Arab Spring revolutions throughout. It is also interesting how the tone of much of the discussion has not changed so much:
Sylvester Mazzolini defended the pope against Luther in his “Dialogue Against the Presumptuous Theses of Martin Luther”. He called Luther “a leper with a brain of brass and a nose of iron” and dismissed his arguments on the basis of papal infallibility. Luther, who refused to let any challenge go unanswered, took a mere two days to produce his own pamphlet in response, giving as good as he got. “I am sorry now that I despised Tetzel,” he wrote. “Ridiculous as he was, he was more acute than you. You cite no scripture. You give no reasons.”
Snap!
Also circulated at the time was this political cartoon on the origin of monks, created and circulated by the pro-Lutherans. Spoiler alert: they were crapped out by demons.
Over at The Renaissance Mathematicus, Thony Christie has an interesting follow-up post on the topic. He points out that the role of cheap mass production of pamphlets in driving the Reformation is academically well established. He also makes interesting points about the role of the new printing technology in spreading the astronomical ideas of Copernicus and Kepler, as these sort-of hitchhiked on astrological pamphlets.
Also, he calls me a sick warped bastard, but in a good way.
My recommendation: go read both!
Mongolian Joke Video Ricchi e Poveri ft Classic Gem and Zaya
So, in the process of researching the upcoming Darwin Eats Cake, which is going to be featuring Mongolian humor – or, rather, Mongolian-inspired “humor” – I came across this. I’m not entirely sure what the joke is, but I think it relates to splicing in some presumably Italian dude into the video?
The comment left by the poster on YouTube was:
“Italian pop mongolian pop new super best”
I think Classic Gem is the woman, and Zaya (apparently pronounced “Z-A-Y-A”) is the guy, but I’m not really sure.
Anyway, I was sort of grooving on it, and I thought I would share. You are welcome!
Have a shiny (샤이니) Christmas
So, here’s a little bit of Christmas joy from South Korean boy band SHINee (샤이니). They’re like the Back Street Boys of Korea, or maybe the Spice Girls of Korea, or maybe the Harlem Globetrotters of Korea.
I don’t know, there are five of them.
Enjoy.
Calamities of Nature on the Meaning of Christmas
So, this comes from Tony Piro’s awesome Calamities of Nature comic. It’s from last year, but has not become less true. Check out the rest of Tony Piro’s work.
Doctor Who Timeline / Infographic
So, I like this mostly because it is really long, and thus exploits one of the affordances of the web format. I mean, it would either look like crap in a magazine, or involve a big fold-out thingy, and probably no one would bother to make it then.
Anyway, this comes from CableTV.com. It’s got all your Doctors, your Companions, your villains, and little fun facts.
Minor quibbles:
Considered by many to be the most iconic Doctor, the fourth Doctor appeared in more seasons seasons and adventures than any other.
The Fourth Doctor is the only Doctor.
“Blink” is consistently cited as one of the most popular episodes in the history of the series, even though the Doctor is largely absent from the majority of the episode.
The supposed “Doctor” in this case is the tenth “Doctor,” in light of which I would suggest replacing “even though” with “because.”
Fun fact not included in the poster: Lalla Ward, who played the second Romanadvoratrelundar, is married to Richard Dawkins.