See
how pencil sharpeners really work.
Toast? Bah. Jesus appeared to her
in a fruit (from NickM).
Now
this is how you
play billiards.
Meet
Jucika, a somewhat educational Hungarian comic strip from the 1950s.
The
Headington roof shark is now safe.
Don't
eat outside (notice the sign at the very end).
If "the rapture" ever happens,
it might be this.
Obviously
a crazy person.
Disney does Halloween -- and remains Disney.
25 years later, the
Harry Potter books are
more popular than ever. From Thailand, there's a new anniversary edition with
great new illustrations.
Crazy Eddie has Halloween songs from
The Harp Twins and
Broken Peach.
Some skeletons look their best at night.
More skeletons here, and a link to vote for the best one.
Always remember that
not everyone on the internet is American. The other 96% of the world is there as well.
These abominations exist; in fact, they're everywhere (found via
Miss Cellania).
Some great
sky photos here.
The Earth
has more tree cover today than it had twenty years ago.
Planets with atmospheres
are probably be a lot rarer than we thought.
Cells which are unambiguously dead can sometimes
be brought back to life.
Assholes get pwned.
Some good
security tips here.
If you use PayPal,
read this.
Spanking kids causes problems.
You still see what you cannot forget.
These Russians exist (found via
Hackwhackers).
In 2001, a pastor in New Mexico
organized a book-burning, with JK Rowling and JRR Tolkien among the authors targeted (from NickM).
Here's
the latest on Salman Rushdie. It's bad.
Oregon's leading newspaper was
promoting virulent racism during the nineteenth century.
Gas prices fall,
Democrats rise.
A fervent and life-long Republican voter
makes the switch. An activist
talks about why he did the same.
Don't let
social pressure distort your sense of political reality.
Live by the dumbth,
die by the dumbth.
It's
the most important election ever -- again.
"
Accessory dwelling units" may help with the affordable housing crisis, at least in California.
Fixing the environment
can take time.
Here are some
statistics and links on early voting, updated daily. So far
this is not looking like a "normal" midterm election. These numbers look
encouraging for Democrats (found via
Hackwhackers).
Utterly disgusting.
Christianity is an
apocalypse cult.
People who want to
abolish the police can't coherently explain how it would work.
Stop worrying about the polls and vote.
Most Americans
support merit-based college admissions.
Crime is a potent issue for Republicans, making
the race for New York governor surprisingly close.
The number of shootings here in Portland
has tripled in the last three years. I suspect the huge rise in violence and vandalism is the reason why our race for governor is neck-and-neck in this normally blue state.
Gresham (a medium-size city just east of Portland) turns to
roving surveillance cameras to fight the crime wave.
"
This certainty that one moral framework is so absolutely right that society has the right to hold everybody accountable to it has been pervasive throughout human history but it has not produced any societies that most of us would like to live in."
We need to rein in
corporate greed.
Vandalism
won't advance a cause. Just the opposite.
Economists worry about Republicans winning the House.
Amazon
responds callously to the brutal death of a delivery driver.
"They're not doing these surgeries on minors" --
yes they are.
Many Americans are
losing interest in covid boosters. It's not a good sign.
If Republicans take the House, it would be very unwise for them to
impeach Biden.
Voting matters,
even if you're gerrymandered.
What would a "
Christian nation" mean?
Republicans
have a long track record of opposing women's equality.
71% of Americans believe that democracy is in danger,
but there's no consensus about what that means.
Kanye "Ye" West
samples a very old tune.
Democrats need to
fight smarter in Arizona.
At last, it looks like housing will
become a little more affordable.
The House prog
Ukraine appeasement letter was a huge blunder. And the "we wrote it in June and released it by accident" cover story
isn't very plausible.
Some ideas here for
keeping democracy viable in an age of lies and polarization.
Democrats are still
losing working-class voters (and no, not only white ones).
The US
is not short of oil. High prices are the result of oil-company policies.
Activists in Canada expose more
meat-industry horrors.
The UK's new prime minister
supports women's rights.
Britain's National Health Service
returns to sanity on treatment for trans minors.
Discussion here.
Europe is
well prepared to disregard Putin's energy blackmail. It now has
a surplus of natural gas. The war has
boosted the development of clean energy.
Some of Putin's right-wing admirers
are repudiating him.
A moderate-right blogger speculates on
the end of the Ukraine war. If the aid we've sent takes Russia down,
it will be a bargain.
This week saw continued
massive protests in Iran despite the regime's efforts to crack down.
A detainee
describes the horrors of the regime's torture chambers.
See Iranians
knock mullahs' turbans off to show their disdain for their oppressors.
The regime
seems to think the people need its permission.
Brazil is holding
a presidential election this weekend.
China sees a rare and daring
public act of protest.
More links at
Angry Bear and
Miss Cellania.
My own posts this week:
polling uncertainty,
the world we live in, and a video on
China's high-tech façade.
After all, it's only 365 days until Halloween!
