Burn After Reading

The new Cohen brothers film looks fun.

old school

Another impossibly large photo to keep your hard drive healthy. This one's of Montgomery, date unknown taken in 1916. (Thanks guys)

UPDATE: I got the photos here. Just do a 'Montgomery' search.

shatterer of worlds

A picture from Opération Canopus, France’s first two-stage thermonuclear test conducted on August 24, 1968 at Fangataufa atoll. I've seen this a hundred times but these high resolution shots are fascinating.

insert bad dog pun here

Apparently Ohio Northern University, where I attended law school, has recently awarded a dog a bachelor's of science degree in canine companionship.

Mary Pat's reaction: "They're gonna disbar us."

opulence

One wine connoisseur wondered just what makes the '47 Cheval Blanc one of the finest wines in the world. He found out:

The impeccable storage undoubtedly explains why the '47 Cheval I drank that night now ranks as the greatest wine of my life, a title I doubt it will relinquish. The moment I lifted the glass to my nose and took in that sweet, spicy, arresting perfume, my notion of excellence in wine, and my understanding of what wine was capable of, was instantly transformed—I could almost hear the scales recalibrating in my head. The '47 was the warmest, richest, most decadent wine I'd ever encountered. Even more striking than its opulence was its freshness. The flavors were redolent of stewed fruits and dead flowers, yet the wine tasted alive; it bristled with energy and purpose. The '47s signature flaws—the residual sugar and volatile acidity—were readily apparent, but it was just as Lurton had said: In this wine, the flaws inexplicably became virtues. The analogy that sprang to mind wasn't port; it was Forrest Gump. This was the Forrest Gump of wines—clearly defective, completely charmed. I realized that it was silly even to try to place the '47 in the context of other wines; it defied comparison, a point underscored when I tasted another legend, the 1945 Château Latour, later that night (yeah, it was a nice evening). The Latour was stunning—probably the second-best wine I've ever had—but it at least fell within my frame of reference: It was a classically proportioned Bordeaux that just happened to be achingly good. The '47 Cheval, by contrast, was an otherworldly wine—a claret from another planet. And it was amazing.

those pesky women

The Vatican once again proves its inability to cope with the modern world.

chair of the day

from here.

put your orders in now

Apparently Volkswagen is developing a protoype car due out in 2010 that gets 235 mpg.

word of the day

"Staycation"

think your gas is high?

It's all relative.

'breathtaking inanity'

According to a recent study conducted by the National Science Foundation, one in eight U.S. high school biology teachers presents creationism or intelligent design in a positive light in the classroom, despite a federal court's recent ban against it.

back in the day

Lovely old photos of New York City.

quote of the day

"God put me on this earth to raise hell."

- Richard Burton

flashy

Spectra is one of the coolest news aggregator/reader things I've seen.

temple of doom

Interesting article on Otto Rahn, the Nazi archaeologist who inspired the real Indiana Jones.

quote of the day

"The density of the cloud can make no difference in the right to have it removed."

Whitney v. Port Huron, 50 N. W. 316, 317

Alabama's Gourmet Beer bill has been ignored again

Last year the Gourmet Beer Bill was given the "Shroud Award" for the "deadest bill of the session".

This year members and supporters of Free the Hops rallied around magnificently and carried out a sustained effort of education on the issues, such that every single legislator in the Alabama Legislature heard about Gourmet Beer and knew what the real issues were.

We were failed by the Senate. They spent the entire session in petty bickering, being too busy scoring political points to do the job we pay them to do. An entire legislative session squandered in point-scoring instead of dealing with the very grave legislative issues that were before them.

The senate didn't deal with the education budget. They didn't deal with removing the 4% grocery tax. They didn't deal with the smoking ban. They didn't deal with a bill to prevent large corporations avoiding paying Alabama taxes. They didn't deal with a bill to exempt the Federal Stimulus Check from Alabama taxation.

It is time for you, the people of Alabama, to feel outraged at this. The senators behaved in a way that brings shame on the state, and they need to learn that their actions have consequences on their own political careers.

Let me be blunt here: the issue is not that the senators failed to deal with Gourmet Beer. The issue is that they failed you, the people of Alabama - and that failure needs to be punished.

Call, email, or write your senator. Tell them how you feel about their dismal failure to achieve anything this year. Tell them how you feel about their poor representation of you on the national political field. Tell them how you feel about them confirming everyone's prejudices about our great state.

Tell them you will remember that all they achieved in 2007 was to vote themselves a huge pay rise.

Above all, tell them that in 2010 you will remember their failures in 2007 and 2008. And that voluntary failure is not acceptable.

Find your senator: http://capwiz.com/state-al/dbq/zs.dbq

Stuart Carter, President, Free the Hops | Alabamians for Specialty Beer

hahahah

San Diego Zoo, Prison Merge

SAN DIEGO—Plagued by a lack of funding and growing staff shortages, the San Diego Zoo and Ironwood State Prison were combined earlier this week, bringing local inmates and wildlife together for the first time under the same roof.

The new state-of-the-art facility—which will house 12 separate cell blocks, a reptile house, two weight rooms, and a primate sanctuary—is expected to save the state of California up to $5 million in operation costs over the next year.

hyperreal

This is the new CGI. Apparently it involves lots of destruction.

hypnotic

A water balloon at 1000 feet per second.

READS NEWSPAPER AT THE TABLE

How do you rate on the Marital Rating Scale?

triple style word

Must have these.

full service

just does not understand

No, no, no.

DUDE, YOU DRIVE A CAR THAT GETS 14-16 MPG. Correlation?

go Delta go

Delta to install revolutionary Cozy Suite seats in economy class, tourists rejoice.

wiley

Are you a coyote starving in the desert with no food around except a very fast roadrunner? Call ACME Products for a full color catalog.

Lego recreations of famous photos

Tiananmen Square
Originally uploaded by Balakov.

See the whole set here.

quote of the day

"Fundamentally, the Bible is not a book of science... It's a love letter written by God to his people in the language of two or three thousand years ago... So one cannot ask the Bible for scientific responses."

-- José Gabriel Funes, Pope Benedict's official astonomer.

Whoever made this video needs to keep that in mind.

of course

Neil Young has new spider named after him.

If only

The day there was no news.

how very odd

Animated graffiti.

Free the Hops update

Dear member or supporter of Free the Hops,

Unfortunately, an unexpected controversy in the Alabama Senate Thursday caused several hours of stalling tactics and the Gourmet Beer Bill was delayed until Monday, May 19. The controversy had nothing to do with us. We were just caught in the crossfire. May 19 is our last chance to pass Gourmet Beer this year as it is the last day of the regular session.

We should continue to look at the positive. This gives you more time to keep the pressure on your state senator and encourage your friends, co-workers, family, and everyone else to do the same. You have done great work so far. Thanks to your phone calls and emails last week and over the years, we now have 16 senators who have publicly stated their support for our bill, 7 more who are "probable" Yes votes, and several more who are undecided. Only a couple of senators are absolutely opposed to us, which is incredible work in Alabama.

We need to keep up the good work. We believe we already have the votes to pass, but we need to make sure they realize this is an important issue to their constituents, with broad support, that needs to be addressed this year. Because of the rules of the Senate, any senator can delay our bill in a variety of ways. Time is running out, and I want to make sure we're voted on as soon as possible. Even if your senator is a definite Yes vote, continue to communicate with him or her. When we passed the House of Representatives this year, some of our supporting legislators worked behind the scenes to keep their colleagues from delaying the vote. The more support we have, even among senators who already plan to vote Yes, the better.

Several people who have contacted me after calling their senator said it took around 2-3 minutes at most and most of them talked to a secretary. It's really very simple and it's our best weapon. We don't have millions of dollars in campaign money or a powerful union, but we do have a lot of dedicated voters.

Here's a suggestion if you don't know what to say:

"Senator, my name is (name) and I live in your district. I just wanted to call to let you know I would like you to vote yes on HB196, the Gourmet Beer Bill. Thank you, and have a great day."

Some of you have been able to engage in more conversation, but letting them know that you are a constituent and you support the Gourmet Beer Bill is all that I'm asking for. Thank you for all you've done so far, and for continuing your advocacy.

Together, we can Free the Hops!

Stuart Carter
President
Free the Hops | Alabamians for Specialty Beer

assistance requested

OK folks, I need your ideas/genius/brainfarts. So I'm really enjoying this beer-brewing silliness and have decided it might be fun to come up with some labels to put on the beer I force my friends to drink. The labels will need a super-cool logo, and that's where you come in.

The name of the beer is "Crooked Brew" and I need a suitable logo to match the kickassery of this name. Do you have any ideas? When my dad ran for circuit court judge a few years back he made some signs that included a shepherd's staff (or 'crook') cleverly hidden in the design. Maybe something like that would be cool. Anyway, send me your ideas. Beer will reward the idea I end up using.

Logo ideas that include skulls, power tools, weapons, or my dog Scout will be considered first. Logos that include all four may be accepted sight unseen. Logos that include references to amoebic dysentery, cryptosporidium or any other water (or beer)-borne illness will not be considered.

forced to go green

Why $120 oil is good.

kids say the darndest things about politics

subdivision naming: piece of cake

torchy, lovelorn

News copy can be beautiful if you just read selectively.

[this is drought]

go Zach go

Support Zach Feinstein in Getting Drafted into the NBA

"The short story is that I, Zachary Feinstein, have declared for the 2008 NBA Draft. As a 5'8" 130 pound Caucasian, I am the perfect candidate for professional basketball. Also, I do not play basketball.

You see, I am not currently on my college's basketball team (Division 3 just for reference) nor did I try out to be. I was at no point on my high school's basketball team nor did I try out to be. I was at no point on my middle school's basketball team nor did I try out to be. The last time I was on a basketball team was before Bill Clinton got caught with his pants down.

So there you have it, I, Zach Feinstein, am in the 2008 NBA Draft."

splode

Amazing photos from the recent volcano eruption in southern Chile.

Thanks, Sharon!

microart

Sand is beautiful.

hillary gtfo

Yes.

free the hops emergency help needed!

A message from Stuart Carter, President, Free the Hops

Members and supporters of Free The Hops,

Nothing is certain in Alabama politics, but we are confident that our lobbyist can get HB196 on the Senate's special order calendar tomorrow, which is the next-to-last day of the 2008 session. Passing a Senate floor vote is the final hurdle before the Gourmet Beer Bill can be sent to the Governor to sign it into law. It all comes down to this moment.

Although we take nothing for granted and encourage everyone to make a final call and email to your own Senator to encourage him or her to vote Yes on HB196, we have good reason to believe we have the votes needed for passage. Unfortunately, we have gotten word that one Senator may be prepared to stop our bill from ever coming up for a vote. Senator Hank Erwin has said he is inclined to filibuster the Gourmet Beer Bill because of his religious convictions. He is fundamentally opposed to all "pro-alcohol" legislation, period.

Because the end of the session is close at hand, the Senate as a whole has no patience for filibusters at this point. If anyone threatens a filibuster, they will most likely carry over the controversial bill and move on, possibly ending our chances of success this year.

So we are asking ALL of our members to call Hank Erwin today or early tomorrow (before 10am). Even if you are not one of his constituents, his threat to filibuster could prevent your own Senator from ever having a chance to cast a vote on the bill, which is not fair. BE POLITE. It is absolutely imperative that we all take the high road and be models of Christian charity and civility. But he needs to know that Alabamians are overwhelmingly in favor of HB196 and we want him to allow it to come up for a vote.

All you need to say is that you support HB196, and while you respect his convictions and understand he will vote No, you would simply like him to allow the bill to be voted on. Keep it short and simple.

He will be in the State House today and in the morning. His office number is (334) 242-7873. You can also send an email to senatorerwin@aol.com, but phone calls will have the biggest impact.

ah hahah!

makes cents

A fine analysis of the federal tax rebate coming to a mailbox near you. As summed up by Dave Barry:

Q. What is an Economic Stimulus Payment?

A. It is money that the federal government will send to taxpayers.

Q. Where will the government get this money?

A. From taxpayers.

Q. So the government is giving me back my own money?

A. Only a smidgen.

Q. What is the purpose of this payment?

A. The plan is that you will use the money to purchase a high-definition TV set, thus stimulating the economy.

Q. But isn't that stimulating the economy of China?

A. Shut up.

Also amusing: http://www.howispentmystimulus.com/.

still there

When the U.S. fought Japan in the Pacific during the years 1941-1945, many of the battles occurred on small, mostly uninhabited islands. There were occasionally surprising results from the unexpected arrival of troops. On some islands, like Kwajalein, the battles were intense and still affect the lives of the natives living there, mainly through the existence of unexploded ordinance ("UXO") left on the beaches. Nearly 70 years later, the U.S. is still trying to clean up after those conflicts. This guy worked on a UXO demolition team for three years in the Pacific, and has some amazing photographs. Be sure and check out the WWII artifacts he found.

big storm

This electrical storm on Saturn is roughly the size of the planet on which you are presently affixed. And it's been kicking for three straight months.

shark surfing (this has to be fake)

a common lament

Saturday was Dirt, Sweat & Gears, the 2nd annual 12-hour race in Fayetteville, TN. It was a doozy. Notice the guy's rear derailleur in the photo--yep, it's trashed. After a heavy rain Friday night the mud was bad on the first lap and there were a lot of cycle casualties. But the weather cleared and it became a beautiful day. Hard 10-mile trail but a great event. DSG is a superbly organized race and everyone on the trail was courteous and helpful. I was so tired afterwards it was all I could do to stand and listen to the awards ceremony.

effective