Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Poem For Jeremiah Wright

I was planning a long post here on the Jeremiah Wright Press Club fiasco, but then I realized I could sum the whole thing up with three photos and a short poem:





Some people.
When you point a camera at them.
They get funny in the head.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Early Color Photographs


The Daily Mail has these first color photographs taken in England from as early as 1913.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Egypt's Abandoned Hotels


Sinai hotels abandoned in mid construction via BLDGBLOG.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Primaries

The word suggests the beginning of something. Maybe it's time to change the name of what's going on this year.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Mt. Loretto Orphanage


A large collection of photos taken at the abandoned orphanage via Modern Ruins.

Monday, April 21, 2008

Excerpt

"If you don't want a man unhappy politically, don't give him two sides to a question to worry him; give him one. Better yet, give him none. Let him forget there is such a thing as war. If the government is inefficient, topheavy, and tax-mad, better it be all those than that people worry over it...

Give the people contests they win by remembering the words to more popular songs or the names of state capitals or how much corn Iowa grew last year, Cram them full of noncombustible data, chock them so damned full of 'facts' they feel stuffed, but absolutely 'brilliant' with information. Then they'll feel they're thinking, they'll get a sense of motion without moving. And they'll be happy, because facts of that sort don't change. Don't give then any slippery stuff like philosophy or sociology to tie things up with. That way lies melancholy...

So bring on your clubs and parties, your acrobats and magicians, your daredevils, jet cars, motorcycle helicopters, your sex and heroin, more of everything to do with automatic reflex. If the drama is bad, if the film says nothing, if the play is hollow, sting me with the theremin, loudly. I'll think I'm responding to the play, when it's only a tactile reaction to vibration. But I don't care. I just like solid entertainment."

Spoken by Beatty, the Fireman, in Ray Bradbury's FAHRENHEIT 451 (1953)

Friday, April 18, 2008

Baracky

Thursday, April 17, 2008

National Geographic China Project

National Geographic has posted the results of a project called Your Shot China Map - an interactive map where you can view hundreds of photos submitted by citizens from different regions. There are some very good shots revealing the incredible diversity of the country, and it's worth a visit here.

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

But Girls Help Boys Learn

An earlier post. And then this new research.

Politics And Poop

On a typical day I like to surf my favorite blogs to see what's up. I usually hit sites that feature politics, art, design, and culture. Occasionally I like to mix it up and see what's going on with my favorite stay-at-home Dad, regular American guy in Kansas, Josh, over at It's only me, Josh.

After plowing through all the election spin, Monday's post delivered as a nice change of pace. But then, wait, I realized that Josh's post isn't much different from what they're slinging on many of the political sites. The full story here.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Beards Circa 1900


Link here. Check out the "Hollywoodian".

Monday, April 14, 2008

Graphic


How to look glamorous in glasses. American Optical 1959. Via Plan 59.

Friday, April 11, 2008

Stuff That's Probably True

Girls are smarter than boys. Until the girls start reading People Magazine. Then the boys move ahead.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Bukowski

small conversation in the afternoon
with John Fante

he said, "I was working in Hollywood when Faulkner was
working in Hollywood and he was
the worst: he was too drunk to stand up at the
end of the afternoon and so I had to help him
into a taxi
day after day after day.

"but when he left Hollywood, I stayed on, and while I
didn't drink like that maybe I should have, I might have
had the guts then to follow him and get the hell out of
there."

I told him, "you write as well as
Faulkner.:

"you mean that?" he asked from the hospital
bed, smiling.

100 Year Old Antarctic Huts


The huts of Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton remain eerily preserved as evidence of journeys from a hundred years ago. More photos.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Space Travel (And How We Saw It)


Square America has a nice collection of snapshots taken of TV screen coverage of early space missions. The full series here. Above: astronaut Gordon Cooper.

Monday, April 7, 2008

Happiness

And other videos here.

Thursday, April 3, 2008

Ambush

Zaidon, Iraq:

Tax Time

AngryBlackBitch tells it like it is.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Single?

More available girls east. Guys west. Full singles map.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Mad Fold-ins



The New York Times has an article about Mad Magazine's Al Jaffee, creator of Mad Fold-Ins. Interactive Fold-Ins here.