US video journalist killed in Oaxaca by paramilitaries UPDATE, 10-30-06: "Federal police backed by armored vehicles and water cannons tore down barricades and stormed embattled Oaxaca on Sunday, seizing control of the city center from protesters who had held it for five months. A 15-year-old boy manning one barricade was killed by a tear gas canister...Some demonstrators used syringes to pierce their arms and legs, then paint signs in their own blood decrying the police." Link (thanks Richie).
--------------------
BoingBoing reader Jenny Smith says,
My dear friend Brad Will was killed in Oaxaca yesterday. Brad was a journalist, and he was an activist. He was always, always giving everything he had to work for justice and make the world a better place. We are all so much poorer now that he is gone. I can only hope that his death can serve to bring some attention to what is happening in Oaxaca. I am sure that Brad would have wanted that. Here is the last post Will filed from Oaxaca, at indymedia: "death in oaxaca: another murder in the months long struggle in oaxaca." More posts there related to his death: Link.
Snip from Houston Chronicle account of Will's death:
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Video Journalist Killed In Oaxaca
An Impractical Expensive Watch
This is a special limited edition Gauge Mecha 1 BMF "concept watch" from Avant Garde Mecha Complications -- it's got a complicated impractical readout, an awesome color scheme, "tamper resistant" torx screws, a CNC-cut steel chassis, und zo weiter. The only downsides? The manufacturer calls it a "man toy" (gag me) and at $2500, it's too pricey to put on my Xmas list. Link (via Watchismo)
Please Note Where These Stem Cells Came From
An artificial liver has been grown for the first time from stem cells, it emerged last night. The breakthrough by British scientists is considered the vital first step towards creating a fully artificial liver that could be used to tackle ever-growing waiting lists for transplants within as little as ten years. A team based at Newcastle University grew the miniature liver, using stem cells taken from umbilical cords. Dr Nico Forraz and Professor Colin McGuckin worked with scientists from NASA in Houston, Texas.
That's right from the umbilical cord!
The Real-Life James Bond
Sidney Reilly was a Russian-born adventurer and secret agent employed by the British Secret Intelligence Service. His notoriety during the 1920s was owed in part to his friend, British diplomat and journalist Sir Robert Bruce Lockhart, who sensationalised their aborted operation to overthrow the Bolshevik government in 1918.After Reilly's death, the London Evening Standard published in May, 1931, a Master Spy serial glorifying his exploits. Later, Sir Ian Fleming would use Sidney Reilly as a model for James Bond. Today, many historians consider Reilly to be an examplary prototype of the first 20th century super-spy.
Saturday, October 28, 2006
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Monday, October 23, 2006
Rebellious Teenaged Black Bears
Even adolescents in the bear family push the envelope when it comes to authority. These 2 were caught with their paws up when they had climbed into a bear-proof dumpster. They even look as if they are thinking"Wow we are in tough doo-doo now".Apparently after they climbed in the dumpster, the bear- proof lid slammed shut on them.How much you want to bet they plead a some kind of lame honey defense. Bet their parents are red-faced now!
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Marie Curie
Famed French scientist, Marie Curie, died of radiation poisoning. The books she used to take notes in during her experiments are so radioactive that until this day they remain locked away as it would be deadly for any human to handle them. [Source: history of scientists book]
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Aunt Jemima
Aunt Jemima®
In 1889, Chris L. Rutt, a newspaperman in St. Joseph, Missouri, began working on creating a self-rising pancake mix. Within a year, he and two associates developed the first pancake mix ever made.
While seeking a name and package design for the world's first self-rising pancake mix, creator Chris L. Rutt saw a vaudeville team known as Baker and Farrell whose act included Baker singing the catchy song "Aunt Jemima" dressed as a Southern mammy. Inspired by the wholesome name and image, Rutt appropriated them both to market his new pancake mix.
Unable to raise the money to promote Aunt Jemima pancake mix, Rutt and his associates sold their company to R.T. Davis Mill and Manufacturing Company, which promoted the new product at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893. The company hired Nancy Green, a famous African-American cook born in Montgomery County, Kentucky, to play the part of Aunt Jemima and demonstrate the pancake mix. As Aunt Jemima, Nancy Green made and served over one million pancakes by the time the fair closed, prompting buyers to place over 50,000 orders for Aunt Jemima pancake mix. For the next thirty years, Green played the part of Aunt Jemima at expositions all over the country.
A caricature of Nancy Green as a black mammy was pictured on packages of Aunt Jemima Pancake mix. In 1917, Aunt Jemima was redrawn as a smiling, heavy-set black housekeeper with a bandanna wrapped around her head. In 1989, the company modernized Aunt Jemima, making her thinner, eliminating her bandanna, and giving her a perm and a pair of pearl earrings.
Urban Legends
My mother has this friend whose daughter got sick from rat pee on her soda can.
Sound familiar? You've might have heard the same story. Except that it was someone's boyfriend's brother—or friend's cousin, or doctor's travel agent—who became ill. Either our food inspection system has gone downhill fast, or the story is an urban legend.
Urban legends are an important part of popular culture, experts say, offering insight into our fears and the state of society. They're also good fun.
"Life is so much more interesting with monsters in it," says Mikel J. Koven, a folklorist at the University of Wales. "It's the same with these legends. They're just good stories."
Why Do Golf Balls Have Dimples?
Friday October 20, 2006
Nearly a century ago, after someone realized that a scuffed-up ball travels farther than a shiny new one, balls gained dimples. Now manufacturers invest millions of dollars each year to design better performing golf balls.
The dimples create turbulence, or mixed airflow, which, if done right, reduces drag.
Here's how it works:
There are two main types of airflow—laminar and turbulent. Laminar movement creates less drag but is vulnerable to "separation"—a phenomenon whereby the air layer that clings to the ball as it moves through the air separates from the ball. Turbulent flow creates more drag initially, but is less vulnerable to separation. At high speeds, like that of a flying golf ball, you want this air layer to cling to the ball as long as possible, and the added dimples do just that.
Friday, October 20, 2006
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Well kid 4 more years may seem a long time when you are a mere 14 but you will make it!-Khagendra Thapa Magar would have to wait for another four years before he can be considered as the world’s shortest man. Amarilis Espinoza, a Guinness World Record Spokeswoman said by email from London that Guinness World Record cannot examine more details until Khagendra Thapa Magar reaches the age of 18 years old.
Yes I Do Qualify As One
You Know You Are Addicted To Coffee If ....
1.You grind Your coffee beans in Your mouth.
2.You sleep with Your eyes open.
3.You have to watch videos in fast-forward.
4.The only time You're standing still is during an earthquake.
5.You can take a picture of Yourself from ten feet away without using the timer.
6.You've worn out Your third pair of tennis shoes this week.
7.Your eyes stay open when You sneeze.
8.You chew on other people's fingernails.
9.The nurse needs a scientific calculator to take Your pulse.
10.You're so jittery that people use Your hands to blend their margaritas.
11.You can type sixty words per minute with Your feet.
12.You can jump-start Your car without cables.
13.You don't sweat, You percolate.
14.You run twenty miles on Your treadmill before You realize it's not plugged in.
15.You forget to unwrap candy bars before eating them.
16.You've built a miniature city out of little plastic stirrers.
17.People get dizzy just watching You.
18.Instant coffee takes too long.
19.You channel surf faster without a remote.
2o.You have a picture of Your coffee mug on Your coffee mug.
21.You can outlast the Energizer bunny.
22.You short out motion detectors.
23.You don't even wait for the water to boil anymore.
24.Your nervous twitch registers on the Richter scale.
25.You help Your dog chase its tail.
26.You soak Your dentures in coffee overnight.
27.Your first-aid kit contains two pints of coffee with an I.V. hookup.
28.You ski uphill.
29.You get a speeding ticket even when You're parked.
30.You answer the door before people knock.
31.You haven't blinked since the last lunar eclipse.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
KInd of Weird
The first pic with her dark hair she resembles Tanya Harding- The 2nd pic is after a bleach and a non-Tanya nose job.This gal is Avril Lavigne btw and not miss Harding.Avril sings Tanya swings.
Thoughts To Learn By-Andy Rooney
That the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.
That when you're in love, it shows.
That just one person saying to me, "You've made my day!" makes my day.
That having a child fall asleep in your arms is one of the most peaceful feelings in the world.
That being kind is more important than being right.
That you should never say no to a gift from a child.
That I can always pray for someone when I don't have the strength to help him in some other way.
That no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with.
That sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold, and a heart to understand.
That simple walks with my father, around the block on summer nights when I was a child, did wonders for me as an adult
Monday, October 16, 2006
More Uses For P-Nut Butter
PLEASE Don't try these at home or anywhere else for that matter!!
Give your cat a bath in it. This is also a form of torture.
Fire it out of a sawed-off shotgun.
Spread it on celery sticks.
Use it to feed the fish.
New diet: nothing but peanut butter 5 days a week. The other two days you are also allowed water.
Hide it in your sock to keep it from getting stolen.
If you are a doctor, prescribe it to your patients regularly.
If you have tight clothing such as stretch pants use it as a lubricant to help get them on.
Stir in some Napalm and feed it to Barney.
New Olympic Event: PB Swimming.
Suggest it (as a type of shield) to the makers of Scorched Earth.
Give it to druggies to help combat withdrawal.
Put it between the pages of library books you hate.
Take it on Safari instead of water because it doesn't evaporate as fast.
If you forget your kneaded eraser for Intro to drawing class just take that "just in case" Peanut Butter out of your duffel and play with THAT instead of paying attention.
Fill your punching bag with it. Pressurize for added effect. Box with spiked knuckles.
Use it as "heavy" ammo for your Super Soaker 11000.
Sunday, October 15, 2006
More Idiotic Behavior
Man Robs Parent's Restaurant
FOND DU LAC, Wis. (AP) -October 12, 2006 - The crook was wearing a ski mask, but the bartender told police she recognized the man.
Not his face, but his voice. Investigators say the bartender identified Chad Rinas as the robber.
He's the son of the owners of C.C. Cody's Tavern in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, and also works there.
According to police, Rinas worked earlier in the evening, then returned to the bar at closing time.
He's being held on $40,000 cash bond.
Saturday, October 14, 2006
18th Century Store Unearthed
FORT EDWARD, N.Y. (AP) -- This history-rich Hudson River community has yielded a museum's worth of 18th-century military artifacts over the decades, from musket balls to human skeletons. But a colonial soldier's daily lot wasn't all fighting and bloodshed. They had their share of down time, and that's where the sutler came in, offering for sale two of the few diversions from frontier duty: alcohol and tobacco.
A five-year-long archaeological project has unearthed the 250-year-old site of a merchant's establishment that sold wine, rum, tobacco and other goods to the thousands of soldiers who passed through this region during the French and Indian War, when Fort Edward was the largest British military post in North America.
Sutler, derived from the Dutch word for someone who performs dirty work, was the name given to the merchants who arrived on the heels of the British army and sold what the redcoats wouldn't -- or couldn't -- provide at a frontier outpost. With the permission of military officials, sutlers set up shop near a fort's gates, taking advantage of the isolated location to do a brisk trade with off-duty soldiers and officers.
With Albany located some 40 miles down river, the sutlers doing business here served as a precursor to today's convenience stores, said archaeologist David Starbuck.
“For your merchants of the day, this is your big captive audience,'' he said recently while giving a tour of the site. “Booze and tobacco were the big things. I guess things don't change with the years.''
Starbuck said “huge numbers'' of artifacts have been found at the sutler site, located in a wooded area on private property on the Hudson's east bank, just south of where the fort stood.
“It's definitely the richest one we've ever found in Fort Edward,'' said Starbuck, a New Hampshire college professor who has led a series of summertime excavations here and elsewhere in the region since the early 1990s.
High school history teacher Matt Rozell, a veteran of many of Starbuck's digs, found the sutler site in the 1990s after hearing stories of treasure hunters sneaking onto the property to loot artifacts. But the illegal digging only scratched the surface. The real treasures, Rozell said, were buried a foot or more below ground.
Smart 6 Year Olds
It's hard to believe these were actually done by grade one kids (6 year-olds), because the last one is classic!
Strike while the .........insect is close.
Never underestimate the power of............ants.
Don't bite the hand that....................looks dirty.
Better to be safe than......................punch a grade 7 boy.
If you lie down with dogs, you'll...........stink in the morning.
It's always darkest before..................DaylightSaving Time.
You can lead a horse to water but...........how?
No news is..................................impossible.
A miss is as good as a......................Mr.
You can't teach an old dog new..............maths.
Love all, trust.............................me.
The pen is mightier than the................pigs.
An idle mind is.............................the best way to relax.
Where there's smoke there's.................pollution.
Happy the bride who.........................gets all the presents.
A penny saved is............................not much.
Two's company, three's.....................the Musketeers.
Don't put off till tomorrow what............you put on to go to bed.
Laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry and..........you have to blow your nose.
There are none so blind as..................Stevie Wonder.
Children should be seen and not.............smacked or grounded.
If at first you don't succeed...............get new batteries.
You get out of something only what you......see in the picture on the box.
When the blind leadeth the blind............get out of the way.
And the favorite:
Better late than............................pregnant
Friday, October 13, 2006
10 Signs Your Guy Hates Shopping
Here Are 10 Signs That Your Guy Hates Going Shopping With You.
You catch him staring into the store's security cameras, waving his arms in the air and mouthing: "Help me!"
In the last year of hitting the mall together, he's gained 20 pounds trying to self-medicate on cheese fries from the food court.
He sleeps like a baby . . . in Victoria's Secret.
The store's lounge area has turned into a therapy circle for men, with your Guy acting as moderator.
You catch him shooting the breeze about baseball and trying to place an eighth-inning bet . . . with a mannequin.
On trips to the shopping outlets,he routinely grabs the arms of little boys and shouts " run for your life, child, before it's too late"
When you suggest he bring a magazine to read to pass the time, he lugs an entire year's worth of back issues.
The saleswoman at the cosmetics counter has complained that your man is a little to fond of "smelling" the nail polish testers.
He starts shoplifting in an attempt to "spice things up"
You hand him a pair of khakis you think might look good on him, and he absentmindedly fashions then into a noose.
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Nerdy Hens
Seems scientists are now encouraging the nerdy hens to lay "SQUARE" eggs.They have been feeding them dice and cubed carrots to make them produce square eggs.They used to try to put the hens in miniature car compactors but animal rights banned that practice.In stead they have been grabbing up all the hens who are computer nerds and finding that has been working out very well.These hens have also been known to play the accordian and square-dance on the sly.
