Jake Krohn

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Elsewhere Archives

Where I've been, what I've seen, what I find interesting or useful. It's a random collection of things. It's a memory that never forgets.

• January 2010

  Justices Overturn Key Campaign Limits

  On the decision: "The dissenters said allowing corporate money to flood the political marketplace will corrupt democracy." We've long since passed that milestone. Personally, I am finding that national politics is becoming increasingly irrelevant. Local activism is where it's at.

• Rothsay embraces energy challenge

  Good stuff happening only 30 miles away. We should be setting such a challenge for our own city, energy company grant or not. I'm no economist, but the true social + economic + environmental payback would be far greater than the initial cost.

• Jobless, and Living in a Bunk

  Amazing that it has come to this for some. It's the future, now, and it's less glamorous than it once looked.

• December 2009

  Matt Blaze: Fighting Terror with Uncertainty

  The TSA needs a few more computer scientists like Blaze working on their policies.

• Is aviation security mostly for show?

  "A terrorist attack cannot possibly destroy a country's way of life; it's only our reaction to that attack that can do that kind of damage. The more we undermine our own laws, the more we convert our buildings into fortresses, the more we reduce the freedoms and liberties at the foundation of our societies, the more we're doing the terrorists' job for them." Brilliant.

• Notes from the No Lone Zone

  A fascinating tour of a Titan II ICBM launch complex. That kin of these still dot North Dakota intrigues and terrifies me.

• British court blocks Tiger Woods photos

  Curiouser and curiouser. Implosion by Christmas?

• Showcase: Dubai's Improbable Tale

  The picture of sewage trucks lined up to cart off the excess is particularly apt.

• November 2009

  Buffett's firm to buy Burlington Northern

  I so hope part of this involves an aggressive passenger rail strategy.

• October 2009

  Disney, a transportation story

  A well-done tilt-shift video, but more so a thoughtful meditation on an idealized version of urban transportation, development, and community versus the awful reality.

• September 2009

  Which line is faster?

  Math and grocery store checkout lines, together at last. Going shopping just got a lot more fun.

• Why We Need Government-Run Universal Socialized Health Insurance

  A well-done cartoon explaining why government-run health insurance is a good idea.

• August 2009

  Classic WTF: I'm Sure You Can Deal

  *head slap*

• Roger Ebert: I'm safe on board. Pull up the life rope.

  Forget movie reviews. Ebert is one of the best living writers of the persuasive essay, period.

• "Omnivore's Dilemma" Author Michael Pollan's New Advice on Buying Food: "Don't Buy Any Food You've Ever Seen Advertised"

  Not a bad piece of advice. Pollan's insights on our country's twin problems of food production and consumption are spot-on.

• Giant Eagle ends optical, shop-scan services

  The Personal Shopper program, a source of personal joy and frustration during my time in Pittsburgh, is ending. Had they done a better job of restricting the use of the self-service checkouts, I'm sure it would have been a bigger hit.

• April 2009

  Inspired Bicycles - Danny MacAskill April 2009

  Masterful conquest of the urban environment. On bike.

• Flickr Hit Hard By Yahoo Layoffs

  This could explain the less-than-usable updates to Flickr Uploadr that have been coming out lately.

• January 2009

  Classic Hits by Microsoft Songsmith: "White Wedding" by Billy Idol

  It doesn't get much better than this.

• There's a plane in the Hudson. I'm on the ferry...

  This may become an iconic piece in the rise of new media and the fall of the old.

• Can a bunch of mathematicians make government more representative?

  Rotten politics, maps, and algorithms. A good read.

• December 2008

  Win Ben Stein's mind

  Now that's a movie review.

• November 2008

  CNN Hologram TV First

  We are living in the future.

• October 2008

  Energy Debate Fact Check #2 - Is Energy Independence Good For the Nation?

  If we want real "energy independence," perhaps we should look to curtailing the construction of car-dependent suburbs, encouraging redevelopment of urban centers and small towns, and building a world-class passenger rail network. All the domestic drilling and electric cars in the world won't help if we don't realize that our current level of energy consumption, regardless of source, is unsustainable in the long run.

• September 2008

  Gas shortage may crimp weekend fun

  Cancel a football game? Never! The reaction is and all too typical. As Kunstler says, "We need to start making different arrangements."

• Letterman vs. McCain, day 2

  Dave at his bitter best.

• Big Contrarian: How big can you fuck up?

  Jack Shedd on the disappointment that both of the presidential campaigns have become. Can't say I disagree.

• David Letterman Reacts to John McCain Suspending Campaign

  Highlights of a dis.

• August 2008

  Obama answers Science Debate questionnaire

  "I will restore the basic principle that government decisions should be based on the best- available, scientifically-valid evidence and not on the ideological predispositions of agency officials or political appointees." Still waiting to hear from the other guy.

• Gas price falls during prayer at the pump

  The deep south, the "power" of prayer, and gas prices. What a deliciously ugly orgy.

• July 2008

  Ken Jennings, penny-pincher

  He's set for life, but he still does his own plumbing. What a guy.

• The Coming Re-becoming

  Kunstler takes a drive and happens upon some fertile ground for thought.

• Oil creates 'overnight millionaires' in N.D.

  "I'm seeing a lot more big, shiny gas-guzzling pickups." Whatever it takes to keep the wheels of the economy greased, eh? Sad.

• U.S. turns against curbs on oil drilling: Exxon

  Also in this issue of Self-Serving News: "French fries and double quarter pounders with cheese are good for you: McDonalds"

• June 2008

  An interview with author James Howard Kunstler

  "I'm really rather worried that we're going to squander our remaining resources on a campaign to sustain the unsustainable."

• McCain's Energy Plan: Correct Diagnosis, Killer Prescription

  "John McCain seems to think that the problem is addiction to foreign oil rather than to oil per se. But a country that controls 3% of world oil reserves while consuming 24% of world demand cannot seriously expect to be self-sufficient for very long."

• Coal may hold solution to gas prices

  Meanwhile, big coal soldiers on.

• Citing Need for Assessments, U.S. Freezes Solar Energy Projects

  Necessary action, those environmental studies, but questionable timing.

• Study: Wireless Web is top tech amenity for hotel guests

  This was something that was conspicuously absent from our $200/night room at a recent conference in Boston. At least I could get an open signal from a nearby house, 14 stories below.

• Pittsburgh International Airport service may be cut, including flight to Harrisburg

  One more reason why we need better train service. Pittsburgh is hardly the only mid-sized city that will experience these cuts.

• IRS boosts mileage deductible

  Thereby keeping the car an attractive means of travel for corporate America.

• Carrotmob: Green Shopping Goes Social

  Flash mobs, auction markets, and environmental activism get together for a roll in the sack.

• Calculus in 20 Minutes

  And it all starts to come back. A big regret in college is not going further into this.

• The annoyance of the local weather

  When I read the sheriff's quote that is mentioned, I just knew that it would get a scalding on Pharyngula.

• A bike races a car and wins

  Of course. The saucy bicyclist and the plodding transit rider are great.

• Guerrilla Gardening

  First time I've used the "subversive" and "garden" tags side-by-side in del.icio.us.

• Twitter Shows the Whale after announcement of 3G iPhone

  "Shows the whale" is the new "screwed the pooch."

• The Varying Impact of Gas Prices

  Dear The South: Don't put all your eggs in one basket next time. Also, to my homies out west: Buffalo Commons isn't such a bad idea now, is it?

• NARP Blog: Rail Advocate Comments on WSJ Story

  Things are better on the other side of the Atlantic.

• This Modern World: A Brief History of Gasoline Consumption in America

  The more things change, the more they stay the same.

• Joy Division Zune

  Mark my words: This will make it to Daring Fireball in the near future, and will be mocked.

• The American car culture is running out of gas

  Yes it is.

• Way to Go Seattle

  Pardon my French, but why the fuck aren't more cities doing things like this?

• May 2008

  City of Pittsburgh to buy 'green' vehicles

  And not a moment too soon.

• What I'd say if I was wrong about climate change

  Snap. There are a lot of very positive side-effects of a greener culture, and they all too often get lost in the muck of the naysayers' arguments.

• Illusion archive - Best Visual Illusion of the Year Contest

  Best website ever.

• Chris Matthews Tears Up Kevin James on Hardball

  Owned.

• The Internet Pinball Machine Database

  I love the Internet for things like this.

• James Howard Kunstler on The Colbert Report

  Kunstler goes big-time and keeps up with the repartee.

• Superdad

  On the inequality of parenting in public: "Fatherhood is not unlike the Special Olympics. Sometimes you get a medal just for showing up."

• Hug an Economist: We Need It

  And the Great Gas Tax Debate rages on at the Freakonomics blog.

• Mentos and Diet Coke Explosion at 1200fps

  Kubrickian beauty.

• Bookstore changes plots

  My first and only real service-type job was selling books for Brad for two days each summer during Wahpeton's annual sidewalk sale. The town lost out when he moved.

• April 2008

  An Open Letter to Our Next President about Energy Policy

  "I understand that for some of you, these changes will be painful. But the pain is coming regardless."

• Services that you get free and pay later

  I have absolutely nothing to add to this. But it is a well-made observation, and fun to think about.

• Pray-in at S.F. gas station asks God to lower prices

  Maybe this guy should get together with the mayor of Birmingham.

• The Billy Letters

  Looking to correspond with felons, economists, and politicians? Assume the identity of a 10-year old boy and have at it.

• Leapin' Larry's Prayer Proclamation

  The mayor of Birmingham, Alamaba, puts his head in the sand and issues a (poorly-written) edict to pray the crime away. Yeah, that will work.

• Downward Cycle

  Wow. A mother of a story about Pittsburgh's recycling efforts, consumption in general, and how we've got a long way to go.

• March 2008

  garfield minus garfield

  Ewww, Jon. Just ewww.

• Why won't phone books die?

  It's an advertising bonanza. But I think the real reason for this article was to share the awesome phone book-related YouTube videos sprinkled throughout.

• Congressman Blumenauer's Recent Speech Before Congress

  I want this guy representing me.

• Six-Word Reviews of 763 SXSW Mp3s

  Wow. Just slogging through these is enough for me. To write reviews of each is a truly superhuman feat. These reviews are also far more kind than mine would be.

• Coding Horror: Choosing Your Own Adventure

  Childhood reading memories, flowchart porn, and a new direction. A quality post.

• The Sacajawea Theory

  "All newborn babies really need is boobs. Everything else is just marketing." Also this gem: "[Cloth diapers are] a sound fiscal decision: with my wife, any trip to Target for $24 worth of diapers inevitably ends up costing us at least $150." Brilliant.

• On Eliot Spitzer and prenuptial agreements

  Good idea. What an absolutely shitty thing to make your wife do. As usual, image trumps all.

• garfield minus garfield

  Jon Arbuckle's existential angst reaches a crisis point.

• Don't mess with biker bars

  I say we scalp him! Then we tattoo him! Then we hang him! And then we kill him!

• February 2008

  So What Is Advancement?

  It's not the artist. It's you.

• Why NASCAR?

  Why indeed.

• The Next Slum?

  Yes.

• No Impact Man: Whoever has the most toys when he dies wins!

  Ed Begley Jr. is probably Advanced.

• The Getting It Gap

  The iPod, yes. But so much more.

• League of Conservation Voters 2007 Congress Scorecard

  Pulling up the rear with a big fat 0? John McCain. America, consider yourself warned.

• xkcd - Duty Calls

  We do this out of a sense of obligation.

• Animal Cruelty at California Slaughter Plant

  The press release and videos behind the Hallmark meat recall. It was a video of shit like this that turned us into vegetarians nearly 5 years ago. Factory farming and slaughtering is a despicable practice.

• Is making a better car like making a better cancer?

  Food for thought.

• Overheard at the Waldorf School

  Kids say the smartest things.

• County's chief of air quality told to leave

  An environmental regulator is removed because of "slowness in granting operating permits to industry." His replacement? An ex-employee of a company with ties to local heavy industry. This smells rotten.

• Parking Infraction Enforcer

  Who's that masked man?

• Spin The Blac Circle

  Another good Flash time-waster. If you're the motion sickness type, watch out. Excellent song reference, too.

• Putting Candidates' Religion to the Test

  Booyah. "Would you also agree that someone who believes the Earth is 6,000 years old and that Noah's Ark is an event in zoological history would not be an effective leader on issues such as stem cells, climate change, and renewable resources?"

• Paying the price: Tax complicates using car-sharing services

  The Post-Gazette covers the car rental tax and its implications for car-sharing. As they say in Pittsburgh, "It needs fixed."

• By 'bagging it,' Ireland rids itself of a plastic nuisance

  Grocery stores and "leaders" of America, take note: "Within weeks [of enacting the tax], there was a 94 percent drop in plastic bag use. Within a year...plastic bags became socially unacceptable."

• MarsEdit 2

  Just registered. No more typing in stupid little textarea fields for me!

• Follow the Oil Money

  This is one list I'm glad that Mike Gravel's name isn't on.

• January 2008

  Mythbusters, airplane on a conveyor belt

  Hell yeah, the plane takes off. Now can we debate more substantive things?

• Rethinking the Meat-Guzzler

  Wow: "If Americans were to reduce meat consumption by just 20 percent it would be as if we all switched from a standard sedan -- a Camry, say -- to the ultra-efficient Prius." There's an easy way to make a good change.

• All Too Perfect

  Klosterman on why a loss next Sunday would make the Patriots all that much more interesting. I, personally, look forward to retelling the tale of the Perfect Pats to my grandchildren.

• And now comes the boring part

  The project is of questionable benefit, but at least the newspaper got this killer headline out of it.

• Science Friday Archives: The Call for A Science Debate

  More on the push for a science-centric Presidential debate. I can't get behind this enough.

• Passage

  A Rorschach test of sorts. Download and play it; you'll see what I mean.

• Impeachment Statement by Presidential Candidate Senator Mike Gravel

  Not getting the attention you deserve by the major media outlets? Move to impeach the president!

• Caring for a Baby 101

  I, for one, welcome my new responsibilities.

• Detroit Book Repository ruins

  Essay and photos documenting the abandoned Detroit Public Schools Book Repository.

• Mayor seeks to improve snow removal

  When I first saw this headline, I hoped it was a plan to light a fire under the asses of people too lazy to shovel their sidewalks. Too bad.

• Whole Foods to stop using plastic bags

  Finally. I look forward to their competition down the street doing the same thing.

• Author Comes to Natural Food's 'Defense'

  Related to below. Eat better, help yourself, and help the world. This interview was among the best half-hour that I have spent listening to the radio.

• Lifestyle changes can curb climate change: IPCC chief

  Not ready to ditch the house in the 'burbs and move closer to the action? Perhaps these actions are more palatable.

• East Carson Street widening planned

  Too many cars? More roads are always the answer. So much for pedestrian-oriented development.

• David Lynch on iPhone

  Truth in advertising.

• "Why Isn't Senator Gravel in Iowa?"

  Straight from the horse's mouth. He does get some good knocks in against ethanol.

• /~joshuad/rant

  Pittsburgh transit-nerd rants from seven years ago. Also, copious documentation on routes ridden and system obscurities.

• Biden, Dodd to abandon White House runs

  Now with the clutter out of the way, I'm sure Gravel will be covered so much more, right? Right?

• December 2007

  AOL To Discontinue Netscape Browser Development

  I'm not too busted up over this, although I do have fond memories of my first dial-up connection and Netscape Navigator. This must hurt, though: "Most of [the Netscape engineers'] efforts have been aimed at creating a Netscape-skinned version of Firefox."

• Scientific Literacy a Qualification for Office?

  We can only dream of being so lucky. As one astute commenter noted, "I'm afraid that candidates are largely no longer required to have a working knowledge of the economy or international relations, or anything really except campaigning and fundraising."

• Hopewell - Echo and His Brother

  The video is charming in a kids' show public-access sort of way, but the real winner is the song. I can't get it out of my head.

• Jim Kunstler: A Christmas Eve Story

  On "craziness", and how Communism may have left Russia better prepared for its transformation than we will be for ours. On the last point, I can attest that the trains and buses in Prague ran far better than anything I've seen here.

• One Reason We're Not Leaving Iraq

  And it's not the date crop.

• Turn Off Your Engine!

  Good advice. In North Dakota, though, the practice of starting the car 10 minutes before you go anywhere in the winter is so sacrosanct that it may be impossible to overcome.

• YTMND - Don't Taze Me Bro ooooOOOO-OOWW!!

  Police brutality is not funny. That is, unless it is set to ELO. Then it becomes freaking hilarious.

• Pittsburgh & the Mayan Calendar

  Awesome. I knew there was a better reason for moving here than higher education. Pittsburgh '12 -- be there!

• Elvis Costello and The Attractions - Radio Radio on SNL

  30 years ago yesterday, Costello and his band pissed off Lorne Michaels so much that they were banned from the show for years. The energy during the switch is awesome, as is the anger on Costello's face during the close-ups.

• Citizens question tax exemption for UPMC tuition gift

  I would certainly hope so. To give a gift, then introduce conditions to the gift after the fact, is to be less than genuine in one's intentions. I wouldn't call it extortion (yet), but this should be a more transparent process.

• ITAPPMONROBOT - The Daily WTF

  A funny, inspired hack to a frustrating situation.

• Bikefast

  I would love to see a mass of morning commuters using this.

• This Is American Music Revue - American Girl

  Rock and roll all-stars Grand Champeen and friends play a classic. Wish we could have been there.

• U.S. agrees to Bali compromise

  So now we've reached a point where we agree enough to progress towards a final pact in 2009? Nero fiddles while Rome burns.

• Magic Highway USA

  Everyone is linking to this, exclaiming things like "look at how little progress we've made." I'm glad a lot of this didn't come to fruition. As for what did, it's unfortunate that this make-believe continues to drive land use and transportation policies.

• Paul Reubens Discusses Pee-Wee's Big Return

  If these movies get made, I'll start going to church again.

• Paulson confident of rate freeze agreement

  Awesome to see the Treasury pushing to keep the national delusion alive a little while longer.

• November 2007

  Walmart spreading like a virus

  Unbelievable how they still manage to cram new stores in already-saturated areas.

• Launchball

  Stupid addictive Flash games. Don't they know I have work to do?

• From Ants to People, an Instinct to Swarm

  Ah, swarm intelligence. Sometimes the best ideas come from the smallest things.

• Diesel shortages in North Dakota

  The canary in the coal mine?

• Catalog Choice - Eliminate unwanted catalogs you receive in the mail

  It's sort of like a game. How many junk catalogs can you scrounge up and find on the site?

• Using Destruction to Sell Us Cars? Ford Must Be Lost in a Dream.

  A not entirely surprising entry into the annals of poor taste. Opportunistic, in a Rudy Giuliani sort of way, and appealing to those who feel that driving through a city in anything but a urban assault vehicle (with leather seats!) is a risky venture.

• New Guinness advert: Giant domino village

  This commercial is very reminiscent of the Honda "Cog" commercial, which is one of my all-time favorite spots.

• Stop at Red? The Ethics and Politics of Cyclist Red Light Running

  "Let's stop trying to fit the round peg of cycling into the square hole of overly regimented traffic regulations." I couldn't agree more.

• Spam One-liners - a photoset on Flickr

  Hand-lettered illustrations of various spam subject lines.

• WorldChanging: In Seattle, Roads and Climate Get Hitched

  Here's something I'd like to see done around here. Some climate accounting to go along with the area's scattershot development plans would be a wonderful thing. It would probably make heads explode, though.

• nasty nets - part of an email forward my sister sent

  NN passes along a handy safety tip.

• The Bomb in full color

  Shots from a 1968 test by the French army. Breathtakingly scary.

• City worker rigged radio poll to favor mayor

  If the radio station is KQV, this is old news. We've been having our way with it at work for over a year.

• Global Rich List

  Some Thursday morning guilt.

• October 2007

  The environmental impact of death

  We continue on long after our bodies give out. Myself, I kind of like the tree fertilizer option. That is, if the Walt Disney head preservation technique fails to be perfected.

• Another Inconvenient Truth - A presentation you can download

  A peak oil primer. Makes the perfect holiday gift.

• My Thursday night viewings of The Office are in danger: NBC excludes Gravel from the October 30 debate.

• To commute by bicycle is to be closer to the gods.

• The Moby Equation: A mathematical approach to selling out.

• "Two Clues for the Clueless." Another good one by Kunstler.

• September 2007

  Drink a beer and remember more.

• My first run in Prague was a nice one.

• A satisfying explanation for the repeated phone call scene in The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Ultimatum.

• This is a bad thing? The U.S. auto industry is a dinosaur that has outlived its usefulness.

• August 2007

  Apple to NBC: Shove it. Good for them.

• I just don't know what to make of this.

• I think this site has some of the best writing on movies, and this piece on the Bourne trilogy is no exception.

• So true: the Hipster Olympics

• And the award for Father of the Year goes to...

• Conservative think-tank writer calls for Bush to declare himself "President for life." Yeah, this guy is a little nuts.

• Bill is back!

• Sad, but unsuprising behavior from another one of our local driving jackasses. However, I'm a bit let down by the newspaper's apparent lack of interest in the story.

• What a dumbass.

• Interesting reading on real-time MPG feedback in the Prius.

• Could we be taking better advantage of work-from-home situations?

• Progress, one small step at a time.

• July 2007

  When's the last time you listened to Zooropa? I bet it's been too long.

• How walkable is your house?

• June 2007

  An oldie but a goodie: Ken Miller, professor of biology at Brown University, takes on Intelligent Design.

• Kunstler cuts a path down the middle of our national misadventures in Iraq. Plus, my new favorite soundbyte: "I'd like to see a candidate refuse to attend a Nascar race on the grounds that it's an unconscionably stupid fucking waste of energy resources."

• America, you continue to dissapoint.

• Moving? Do it by bicycle.

• May 2007

  Flickr in real-time, too. The flow of information in infinite.

• The world speaks. Immediacy is awesome.

• Interesting idea: Label consumer goods with that product's carbon footprint.

• "Let's stop talking about making better cars and start talking about occupying the landscape differently..."

• Bloomberg + congestion pricing get a word of support from the Brits.

• And I was so looking forward to having a celebratory meal out tonight. This state is lame.

• Someday?

• April 2007

  San Francisco's highway fire may be just what the city needs to kick-start a change -- if they can realize the benefits.

• The Oil Drum has been putting up some great stuff lately. This post, on the Rebound Effect, shows there's a lot more to improving efficiency than just drving hybrids and buying CFL's.

• Running makes us human.

• This is why I love nasty nets.

• Well, at least they came up with different words.

• Where we're at, and where we need to go, energy-wise.

• NYC hits a gusher!

• March 2007

  Hacking the Superbowl.

• February 2007

  Color me impressed. I wonder if I'll see him on my runs around the neighborhood?

• I'm glad this terrible issue is being brought to the government's attention.

• Stupid demands like this are just going to end up hurting the networks more than sites like YouTube.

• January 2007

  Our changing geography, part II.

• Crazy? Yes. True? Yes. As James Kunstler says, "we need to make other arrangements."

• December 2006

  Redefining geography through consumption: Canadian ice shelf breaks free.

• Vista a rip-off of OS X? Nah, it couldn't be.

• 10,600 scientists can't be wrong!

• I don't have time to read this in its entirety just yet, but so far this is a very enjoyable analysis of a U.S. economic collapse by way of analogy to the Soviet Union.

• November 2006

  Thanksgiving was strange this year.

• Think globally, act locally. It's probably the only way we can make things better.

• October 2006

  "Clueless windbag?" "Devoid of common sense?" "Short bus candidate?" They all work for me.

• This guy is just begging to be Googlebombed. "Talentless hack" is too kind a moniker for the likes of him.

• Yet another reason why Bill Murray will always be cooler than you.

• September 2006

  What's your ecological footprint? Mine is 2.5 Earths. Conclusion? We're all screwed.

• You can't make this kind of stuff up.

• Whew, I'm glad they settled on this one.

• Or: Man will never shave again.

• August 2006

  Crayons!

• Here's something even more un-American than mocking SUVs: Criticizing our air-conditioned culture.

• Dear Adnan Hajj: Before you try to slip a doctored photograph on to the Reuters wire, I suggest you brush up on your Photoshop skills.

• Malcom Gladwell's father explains his geothermal heating/cooling system.

• "Sweet Holy Jesus, I have seen the light! And the light burns!"

• Prudhoe Bay, the country's best source of domestic oil, is to be shut down temporarily. Also, hurricane season is upon us and things aren't going so well in the Middle East. Are we feeling the squeeze yet?

• July 2006

  "Hello, Dial-An-Assassin? Yes, there's this nutjob in Oklahoma..."

• Most excellent. A short movie from 1966 recording a Martian's view of Earth. The ending is especially poignant.

• Is "support for traditional marriage" really the "best message we can give to the Middle East and all the trouble they’re having over there right now[?]" Who elects these fools?

• Of the approximately 700 million people using the Internet, it would be nice to believe that a couple thousand would chip in $10 to help this guy out. I've enjoyed the Test Pilot Collective in the past, so he gets my support.

• Hi, I'm Steve Bradbury, and I'm a tool.

• Bush: "I'd rather be right than popular." Someone should tell him he's 0 for 2 on that one.

• Um...

• I remember the days when CNN.com's red news alert graphic used to mean something.

• Condoleezza Rice unleashes her optic ray. Watch out, Kim Jong Il!

• It's nice to know we have some Real Smart People deciding how we should legislate the internet. "An internet was sent by my staff..."; "It's a series of tubes." WTF?

• June 2006

  A brilliant parody of all the "Flickr experts" that I so desperately loathe.

• Unburdened by guilt?

• A simple tale of programming, love, escape, and dreams of better days.

• May 2006

  Enlighten yourself this weekend.

• It looks like President Bush is a big fan of recycling... speeches.

• April 2006

  The most original thing I've seen in a long time (Thanks, Dave!).

• John Gruber gives a delicious analysis of Boot Camp and lays out an intriguing future for the Mac.

• Great piece on peak oil and what individuals are doing to prepare for it.

• March 2006

  This is the best news that's come out of South Dakota in a while.

• RaystownLake.net, meet Google Maps. Or MapQuest. Or Yahoo! Maps. Something. Please.

• Xenophobia wins again. Congratulations, bigots; you keep stupidity alive.

• Phoenix has gone without rain for over 140 days. Will someone please remind me why it was such a good idea to build a city in the middle of a desert?

• Global Inventory Hacking. Flash mobs + global scale + commerce. Could be fun.

• I'm not much for self-help advice, but this bit on responsiveness is dead-on.

• The new consensus? "Freak weather patterns" can only be explained by greenhouse gas emissions.

• February 2006

  Just another straw on the camel's back.

• December 2005

  It's hard to express how happy this headline makes me feel.

• Other considered title for this story: "Bush urges continued reduction of civil liberties, claims he is 'above the law.'"

• U2 on the rooftop, even done poorly, can cause panic in the streets!

• "United Pedestrian Front." I like the sound of that.

• Energy crisis? Global warming? Whatever. What this world needs is a ski slope in the desert!

• September 2005

  We all must go sometime.

• Published!

• August 2005

  This is begging to be put on a t-shirt.

• SUV drives 8 to 10 blocks while dragging a bicycle? You, sir, are stupid.

• June 2005

  Free concert bootlegs, courtesy of the Internet Archive.

• Poltz has been enlisted in the Kitten War.

• May 2005

  Well, it's no 'Unless', but it is about MVC. And that is a good thing. [MP3]

• April 2005

  Upon further reflection, 'Unless' by Outrageous Cherry may be the perfect pop song. [MP3]

• March 2005

  Postmodern web design at its best. And I think I like their music too.

• Oh boy! I done need git me some of dese.

• SXSW, BitTorrent, and free music. It's like the perfect storm.

• Bono the next World Bank president? I can't even begin to comprehend this.

• This is somewhat encouraging, at least.

• Awesome. Dark days ahead for the auto-centric lifestyle?

• February 2005

  Even the Pope evolves.

• 80% of Microsoft employees have one. Why shouldn't you?

• January 2005

  Bush calls Putin "Pootie-Poot?" Save that stuff for the bedroom, guys.

• Idea of the day. Hell, the idea of the year.

• No weapons? No problem! We have our hands full already, what with a war and all.

• And then there's this little piece of design heaven: the iPod shuffle.

• Un-freakin-believable: The Mac mini.

• 100 things we didn't know this time last year.

• Well, this is just the most stupid lawsuit ever: Man sues Apple for not making iTunes "compatible" with other players. Good luck with that one, dumbass.

• People like this, I'll never understand.

• Man, if this is even a little bit true, I'm in. Apple, you know your audience.

• An excellent interview with Lawrence Lessig on the NPR show The Connection.

• December 2004

  Want some good meatless chili? Try this.

• Home mortgages = cobra snakes? What? I've seen some bad advertisements, but this is the worst. Who could have ever thought it was a good idea to make something like this?

• Ukrainian presidential candidate Vicktor Yushchenko was indeed poisoned. The effects are unbelievable.

• Print, clip, and distribute. We can all make this world a better place. [PDF]

• As if reproduction wasn't hard enough for nerds already, here's some more good news.

• My favorite Firefox theme, Breeze, is back in business.

• Fifteen minutes of fame: Nancy Zerg. Gone so soon? We hardly knew you.

• November 2004

  Target wised up. But we have screenshots!

• Looks like Target is trying to get a share of the illegal drug business. Watch out Amsterdam!

• Who is smarter?

• Runners evolve better.

• What is more disturbing: That a woman would keep a grilled cheese sandwich for 10 years, or that people would pay $22,000 for it?

• Canada. Colder. Liberal. Better.

• Firefox 1.0 is out. This Bittorrent file provides a pretty fast download.

• Mindless Monday clicking action.

• More election map analysis.

• A Steelers football game is the last place you'd expect to find proper grammar, but still...

• Best gig ever!

• These maps that plot the distribution of votes are so interesting for a number of reasons.

• Wow, now *this* is a rant.

• This is the most interesting election map of them all.

• October 2004

  Here's the perfect product for all of you budding pop stars out there.

• Absentee ballots go missing in Florida. This is a big mess.

• Sadly enough, I helped contribute to the exodus.

• Tell me again why you would vote for this guy? [Quicktime movie]

• Bono gets his stolen notes and lyrics for 'October' back after nearly 25 years. Amazing.

• Photographing the analemma. An extreme exercise in patience and consistency.

• Props to the Dickeyville grotto. Dad and I used to drive by this when we visited the relatives back in Wisconsin.

• Turn off any TV with the push of a single button. This looks like it could be a lot of fun.

• If it was any other band, I'd be skeptical of this deal.

• We saw the CMU Drama department's performance of "Arcadia." So much complexity in such a beautiful play.

• Martha Stewart's Prison Living. "You can make lovely doilies out of your daily allotment of dental floss." Coming soon to a bookstore near you.

• Throw a little chaos into your day.

• "People who don't like being part of the main tribe still like being part of a smaller tribe." A very astute observation that transcends iPods.

• Personal audio broadcasting, Minneapolis style.

• High school students make self-sustaining hydrogen powered vehicle. Impressive. The most we ever did was make ice cream.

• September 2004

  I need this. Several, in fact. I want to hang one on every wall of my house. Sneezy and Poltz would be glad to know Jesus is watching out for them.

• Jimmy Swaggart: continuing to dig himself a deeper hole. How can one man be such an ass?

• Great ad, guys. You almost fooled me. Next time, though, run the copy through the spell checker.

• Viagra not doing it for you? Feeling left behind in the pants? Maybe this will cheer you up!

• I'm Jake Krohn and I approve this browser. Spread the word.

• I am not proud to live in a country where this kind of harassment is encouraged by the highest authorities.

• One weblog post over two years ago has become a outlet of sorts for those affected by one of the most heinous crimes: bicycle theft.

• August 2004

  The Google Olympic hurdler is showing some pretty bad form. Notification has been given to those responsible.

• Not only do they sing it, but they dump it in the river too.

• As if a world economy based around fast-food and Wal-Mart wasn't bad enough. This is madness.

• "The liger is pretty much my favorite animal."

• Various types of engines, animated. Fun to watch.

• Aliens visit Minnesota. Seriously.

• Bed? Coffin? Both? How about a way for paranoid idiots to drop $100K?

• Here lie endless opportunities for debate.

• This is one way to bring people over to your side, I guess.

• Bikes, protests, and Jason Kottke, all wrapped up in a neat little package.

• July 2004

  Wow, this kind of story makes me feel all good inside.

• Lame-o NIMBY's are fed up with the "bums." A brick through their windows, anyone?

• That's the hairiest person I've ever seen! Oh, wait....

• F-bombs and fingers. What is this presidency coming to?

• A fairy tale about the origins of the Grand Canyon. We're in a sad state of mind if the National Park Service is pushing this kind of tripe at their stores.

• Assault weapons are bad. Spread the word.

• The best diet? Eat less, exercise more.

• New Urbanists, proceed with caution.

• Great quote from Dean concerning Ralph Nader -- "when the house is on fire, it's not the time to fix the furniture."

• I just don't agree with this guy's opinion at all. I think it's necessary to remind drivers of their place from time to time.

• Face-to-face video collaboration. Transparencies. Cool.

• Their heart is in the right place, but this is still all wrong. So, so, so wrong. There are better alternatives to taking the kids to soccer practice than a vehicle of war.

• You won't see things funnier than this very often.

• From the "Eyesore of the Month" archives, courtesy of James Kunstler. Bless this country of ours.

• June 2004

  Then and now photographs of Atlanta. This one is a good example of the Pigou-Knight-Downs paradox in action.

• Great headline; unfortunate story. Guys, think twice before engaging in a little locker room humor with your loved one in the kitchen.

• Steady as she goes. All too true, all too true.

• After something like this goes public, one's life must be over, right?

• Is this for real? As far as superpowers go, I'd choose flying over invisibility, but still...

• Here's one for the 'unsurprisingly enough' category.

• Wilco: Deconstructing rock-and-roll and pushing copyright law to its limits. Pioneers, they are.

• "How I learned to love transit," a well-written call for a reconsideration of our lifestyle.

• This does not surprise me in the least.

• Proof that the two wheeled commute (even if it is motorized) is better than the four.

• German engineering vs. American ingenuity. Guess who wins?

• Bagels, economics, and honesty.

• Is this in poor taste? Probably not.

• May 2004

  The more you drive, the more you weigh.

• Calculate how many pounds of CO₂ you emit through your transportation choices. I'm responsible for about 500 pounds and would need to plant 80 maple trees to offset this!

• "I'm going to show these fools how dumb they are to try to drive in this town."

• Stoners beware: this is heavy.

• "When you have determined why you reject all gods but yours, you will understand how small a step it is to reject yours as well." Nicely put.

• "Are You Living In a Computer Simulation?" Pour yourself a drink and find out.

• Yeah. "Do no evil" right up until you file for an IPO. After that, you can cheat a little.

• 34 reasons for change, and growing.

• Make your own Nigerian scam letters for fun and profit!

• It's good to know there's people like this looking out for our best interests.

• I've been listening to this all day. It has all of the elements of my ideal pop song.

• Now, more than ever, this video seems so appropriate.

• It's so funny that the 'miserable failure' thing is still alive and well.

• April 2004

  See the world without leaving your chair.

• Goodbye morning run route. I knew you well.

• Man, as if there wasn't enough to worry about.

• He bikes and, according to those Bush ads, is a supporter of gas tax increases? Sign me up!

• March 2004

  The title of this story says it all.

• A whole 'City' section of the NY Times dedicated to the subway.

• "The greatest and most precious gift in the world is the giving of historical hair." Right.

• Way to go, mankind!

• This could become a weekend project sometime soon.

• This is a far better tool for finding bus schedules than the official Port Authority site.

• A trip to Philadelphia may be in order.

• Well, this explains the black junk I've been coughing up.

• Here's a writer who gets the "social cost versus economic cost" mass transit argument.

• At the risk of sounding too negative, I'm going to have to disagree with this article. Ranked above Minneapolis? No way.

• I used to take comfort in the belief (now false) that what I did had a relatively low impact on the environment. At least I'm getting the most (5+ years and going strong) out of my computer.

• May David Strom and his moneyed cronies be forever stuck in a traffic jam.

• February 2004

  Mozilla Firefox (was Firebird) just keeps getting better and better. Internet Explorer is pretty much useless to me now.

• This is such a simple, yet powerful, idea.

• A great way to find out where locally grown food is being sold.

• Ed Rendell, tireless crusader of mass transit...

• It's nice to see mass transit getting props from the govenor.

• This sounds great, but the station stops seem to be too far away from neighborhoods to make it really useful. It's a start, I guess.

• Remote scripting tutorial here...

• ...and some code snippets here. Could come in handy real soon.

• Lots of great internet-related and electronic art. The SWIPE toolkit project is of particular interest.

• A collection and criticism of website UI elements. A useful resource if you're in to this sort of thing.

• A more formal look at some web design practices.

• One more handy UI reference.

• IKEA as an immersive video game environment (my favorite line -- "Do not try to reconcile your recent participation in anti-globalization protest parades with the fact that you are now on the verge of buying an armchair that somehow costs 23 bucks.").

Elsewhere

• Justices Overturn Key Campaign Limits – On the decision: "The dissenters said allowing corporate money to flood the political marketplace will corrupt democracy." We've long since passed that milestone. Personally, I am finding that national politics is becoming increasingly irrelevant. Local activism is where it's at.
• Rothsay embraces energy challenge – Good stuff happening only 30 miles away. We should be setting such a challenge for our own city, energy company grant or not. I'm no economist, but the true social + economic + environmental payback would be far greater than the initial cost.
• Jobless, and Living in a Bunk – Amazing that it has come to this for some. It's the future, now, and it's less glamorous than it once looked.
• Matt Blaze: Fighting Terror with Uncertainty – The TSA needs a few more computer scientists like Blaze working on their policies.
• Is aviation security mostly for show? – "A terrorist attack cannot possibly destroy a country's way of life; it's only our reaction to that attack that can do that kind of damage. The more we undermine our own laws, the more we convert our buildings into fortresses, the more we reduce the freedoms and liberties at the foundation of our societies, the more we're doing the terrorists' job for them." Brilliant.
• Notes from the No Lone Zone – A fascinating tour of a Titan II ICBM launch complex. That kin of these still dot North Dakota intrigues and terrifies me.
• British court blocks Tiger Woods photos – Curiouser and curiouser. Implosion by Christmas?
• Showcase: Dubai's Improbable Tale – The picture of sewage trucks lined up to cart off the excess is particularly apt.
• Buffett's firm to buy Burlington Northern – I so hope part of this involves an aggressive passenger rail strategy.
• Disney, a transportation story – A well-done tilt-shift video, but more so a thoughtful meditation on an idealized version of urban transportation, development, and community versus the awful reality.
• Which line is faster? – Math and grocery store checkout lines, together at last. Going shopping just got a lot more fun.
• Why We Need Government-Run Universal Socialized Health Insurance – A well-done cartoon explaining why government-run health insurance is a good idea.
• Classic WTF: I'm Sure You Can Deal – *head slap*
• Roger Ebert: I'm safe on board. Pull up the life rope. – Forget movie reviews. Ebert is one of the best living writers of the persuasive essay, period.
• "Omnivore's Dilemma" Author Michael Pollan's New Advice on Buying Food: "Don't Buy Any Food You've Ever Seen Advertised" – Not a bad piece of advice. Pollan's insights on our country's twin problems of food production and consumption are spot-on.
• Giant Eagle ends optical, shop-scan services – The Personal Shopper program, a source of personal joy and frustration during my time in Pittsburgh, is ending. Had they done a better job of restricting the use of the self-service checkouts, I'm sure it would have been a bigger hit.
• Inspired Bicycles - Danny MacAskill April 2009 – Masterful conquest of the urban environment. On bike.
• Flickr Hit Hard By Yahoo Layoffs – This could explain the less-than-usable updates to Flickr Uploadr that have been coming out lately.
• Classic Hits by Microsoft Songsmith: "White Wedding" by Billy Idol – It doesn't get much better than this.
• There's a plane in the Hudson. I'm on the ferry... – This may become an iconic piece in the rise of new media and the fall of the old.

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