(Pictured: A clutch of Slave Leias at Star Wars Celebration IV. There's video, too.)
But wait, there's more...
Recursive link: It was too many years ago today...
Update: You can too order a wopburger.
2,000 people, 3,000 cattle and countless birds, wild animals and insects -- in short, every living thing for miles around -- died because the lake farted.
Washington Redskins players Clinton Portis and Chris Samuels defended Michael Vick on Monday by ridiculing the notion that dog fighting is considered a crime... "I don't know if he was fighting dogs or not," Portis said. "But it's his property; it's his dogs. If that's what he wants to do, do it."
A billboard advertisement for Wesleyan College was removed Monday after officials discovered it had been altered. The billboard, located near the Forsyth Road and Rivoli Drive intersection, was supposed to read, "Picture yourself at Wesleyan." Someone used white and black paint to change the sign to read, "Picture yourself a lesbyan."
"Having [a Visible Panty Line] is unforgivable. It is as bad as picking your nose in public. It is not cute, never has been cute and is a poke in the eye to modern manners."
To promote the upcoming film “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer,” 20th Century Fox and The Franklin Mint altered 40,000 U.S. quarters to feature the character. The U.S. Mint said in a news release Friday that it learned of the promotional quarter this week and advised the studio and The Franklin Mint they were breaking the law. It is illegal to turn a coin into an advertising vehicle, and violators can face a fine.
Dyslexia 'is just a middle-class way to hide stupidity.'
But wait, there's more...
Recursive link: It was too many years ago today...
Update: You can too order a wopburger.
2,000 people, 3,000 cattle and countless birds, wild animals and insects -- in short, every living thing for miles around -- died because the lake farted.
Washington Redskins players Clinton Portis and Chris Samuels defended Michael Vick on Monday by ridiculing the notion that dog fighting is considered a crime... "I don't know if he was fighting dogs or not," Portis said. "But it's his property; it's his dogs. If that's what he wants to do, do it."
A billboard advertisement for Wesleyan College was removed Monday after officials discovered it had been altered. The billboard, located near the Forsyth Road and Rivoli Drive intersection, was supposed to read, "Picture yourself at Wesleyan." Someone used white and black paint to change the sign to read, "Picture yourself a lesbyan."
"Having [a Visible Panty Line] is unforgivable. It is as bad as picking your nose in public. It is not cute, never has been cute and is a poke in the eye to modern manners."
To promote the upcoming film “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer,” 20th Century Fox and The Franklin Mint altered 40,000 U.S. quarters to feature the character. The U.S. Mint said in a news release Friday that it learned of the promotional quarter this week and advised the studio and The Franklin Mint they were breaking the law. It is illegal to turn a coin into an advertising vehicle, and violators can face a fine.
Dyslexia 'is just a middle-class way to hide stupidity.'
Well, having come late to the Mary Jane wears pearls to do the laundry party, I may as well sound off on the other thing that's got everyone's attention. The comic itself won't be on sale until August 27, so I guess it's early yet.
Of course, I'm in real trouble here, because I don't know what the context of this image is. In fact, I'm not sure I can name everyone on it. There appears to be an extra breast and arm at extreme right. Maybe somebody just figured that if six breasts are good, seven is better.
Now, not having recently fallen off the comic-book delivery truck, I have seen the occasional "tentacle rape" scene. I suspect everyone reading these words knows what that phrase means. In fact, apparently, there is only one person in the English-speaking comics-reading world who does not know what it means. And as incredible as it may seem, that person is Joe Quesada, Editor-in-Chief of one of the largest English-language comics publishers in the world, and the man ultimately responsible for the solicitation (and, presumably, upcoming publication) of the image in question. Of this image, and the attention it has drawn, and most especially the attention it has drawn from female comics readers, Joe said:
On the left is Sana Takeda's original art. On the right is a "remix" done by Lea Hernandez (a thoughtful and talented creator in her own right) for her own blog, Dangerous Beauty. At this scale, the alterations are trivial, but they support three basic changes:
Of course, I'm in real trouble here, because I don't know what the context of this image is. In fact, I'm not sure I can name everyone on it. There appears to be an extra breast and arm at extreme right. Maybe somebody just figured that if six breasts are good, seven is better.
Now, not having recently fallen off the comic-book delivery truck, I have seen the occasional "tentacle rape" scene. I suspect everyone reading these words knows what that phrase means. In fact, apparently, there is only one person in the English-speaking comics-reading world who does not know what it means. And as incredible as it may seem, that person is Joe Quesada, Editor-in-Chief of one of the largest English-language comics publishers in the world, and the man ultimately responsible for the solicitation (and, presumably, upcoming publication) of the image in question. Of this image, and the attention it has drawn, and most especially the attention it has drawn from female comics readers, Joe said:
First, I think people are reading way too much into that cover than was ever intended. I heard terms such as “tentacle rape” being thrown around when that in no way is what’s happening, nor does it happen in the book. Those tentacles are the arms of the Brood who appears in the issue and is a major story point, the Brood have tentacles, sorry about that.True, but in the twenty-five years of the characters' presence in the Marvel Universe, every previous depiction has concentrated on their insect-like nature. Previously their tentacles were used as strangling weapons, not mammary palpators. One must also remember that what the Brood want humans for is reproduction (a process fatal to the human egg host), so "rape" is not an inappropriate word for the process.
Secondly, the concept for that cover, soup to nuts came from a female artist.Whom you've just thrown under the bus, in the process of hiding behind her. What exactly do you do at Marvel, if cover approval isn't it?
Also, HFH is a book that features two strong, lead female protagonist who kick major ass; somehow folks have forgotten to focus on that.Does anyone on this cover look like they've ever kicked anybody's ass? No. They look like fruit waiting to be plucked from the tree. Out here in the real world (or as real as it gets when middle-aged men read comic books), we call that out of character.
On the left is Sana Takeda's original art. On the right is a "remix" done by Lea Hernandez (a thoughtful and talented creator in her own right) for her own blog, Dangerous Beauty. At this scale, the alterations are trivial, but they support three basic changes:
- Misty Knight is supposed to be a black woman.
- Costumes now match how they're drawn inside the book.
- Misty, Colleen and Felicia are now directly looking at the threat they face.
Twenty...
Thirty...
Forty...
Fifty...
Thirty...
Forty...
Fifty...
Let's see, what would do justice to Schaffenberger's image of Superboy's butt?
I know. Chaykin's Galactic Space Vagina!
I don't know, something is still missing. What do you think, Batman?
Never mind. ("Alfred? Better head down to the cave and intervene. Bruce is getting sweaty again. I mean, in a bad way. What? Who am I? ...A friend.")
(Thanks to Dorian, Devon and Brandon.)
I know. Chaykin's Galactic Space Vagina!
I don't know, something is still missing. What do you think, Batman?
Never mind. ("Alfred? Better head down to the cave and intervene. Bruce is getting sweaty again. I mean, in a bad way. What? Who am I? ...A friend.")
(Thanks to Dorian, Devon and Brandon.)
Conservatory Outlet staff have stripped bare to raise money that will be put towards providing homes, food, education and medical care to orphaned children in India.
The second annual Austin Naked Calendar, 100% benefitting the Children of Austin Musicians, is full of great photos of nearly naked Patrice Pike, Guy Forsyth, South Austin Jug Band, Kacy Crowley, and more... brought to you by the Soup Peddler in partnership with Spike Gillespie and the John Dee Graham family... an excellent gift and excellent cause...See also Off the Kuff, SpikeG.com, and the Austin Chronicle. Pictured, the New Hot Damn: Renée Woodward, Trish Murphy, and Kacy Crowley.
The 2007 Nude Nuts calendar is a celebration of life, hope and positivity - each month portrays photographs of patients who are “getting on with their lives” after being diagnosed and undergoing treatment.
The Leukaemia Foundation is a national not-for-profit organisation dedicated to the care and cure of patients and families living with leukaemias, lymphomas, myeloma and related blood disorders.
The calendars are on special at $9.95 + postage and all proceeds go to the Leukaemia Foundation.
See also the Weekly Times Online.
Fox News says Michael Moore's new film, "Sicko", is "brilliant and uplifting". I don't think anyone has argued that he isn't a talented filmmaker.
Trivia question: Which Presidential candidate's wife has a tongue stud?
B'bye, Cingular; So long, BellSouth. One ring(tone) to rule them all.
Samantha Larson, 18, of Long Beach, successfully reached the top of Mount Everest on May 16. Is she the youngest person ever to have done it? Well, no. But she probably is the youngest non-native-Nepalese to do it. And she is definitely the youngest person to scale the highest peaks on each of the seven continents.
Fresh footage of the second plane hitting the World Trade Center.
Racism goes on trial again in America's Deep South. Speaking as a native of the official scapegoat region for American Racism (something the rest of the country never lets us forget), I have to challenge the word "again". That would imply that it ever stopped being on trial in America's Deep South. I would submit that much more sensitivity to racial issues is found in the South than the region is given credit for. I would further submit that most other regions, and most especially the regions from which most of our mass media originate, are in deep denial that racism even exists there.
What to say to creationists.
The ten most common passwords, according to PC Magazine. "If you recognize yours, you may as well hand over your wallet or purse to the first person you see on the street." No need to do that, just send it to me.
Only in Florida: A drive-in church.
Trivia question: Which Presidential candidate's wife has a tongue stud?
B'bye, Cingular; So long, BellSouth. One ring(tone) to rule them all.
Samantha Larson, 18, of Long Beach, successfully reached the top of Mount Everest on May 16. Is she the youngest person ever to have done it? Well, no. But she probably is the youngest non-native-Nepalese to do it. And she is definitely the youngest person to scale the highest peaks on each of the seven continents.
Fresh footage of the second plane hitting the World Trade Center.
Racism goes on trial again in America's Deep South. Speaking as a native of the official scapegoat region for American Racism (something the rest of the country never lets us forget), I have to challenge the word "again". That would imply that it ever stopped being on trial in America's Deep South. I would submit that much more sensitivity to racial issues is found in the South than the region is given credit for. I would further submit that most other regions, and most especially the regions from which most of our mass media originate, are in deep denial that racism even exists there.
What to say to creationists.
The ten most common passwords, according to PC Magazine. "If you recognize yours, you may as well hand over your wallet or purse to the first person you see on the street." No need to do that, just send it to me.
Only in Florida: A drive-in church.
2007 is clearly, among other things, the year of Mary Marvel. Old farts like me, though, are wondering if this is a good thing.
Ah, for the good old days of ten cent comics. The Mary Marvel I know would never willingly swing over to the dark side...
Boy. If you thought Wonder Woman had a history of bondage, you should check out the Marvel Family.
Well, she would definitely never wear a skirt short enough to display her firm young gluteus maximus...
And she would always leave the rough stuff to the boys...
She would... She... Huh.
Black vinyl, eh?
(All panels from Marvel Family Adventures #89, art by Kurt Shaffenberger.)
The pendulum set in motion by the infamous Mary Jane maquette is swinging back towards thoughtful, intelligent commentary. Imagine that.
"To argue that cheesecake imagery is harmful to women is to argue that male desire itself is harmful to women."
--Dirk Deppey, Journalista
"Male desire is not inherently harmful, the male gaze is not inherently pernicious, and to think otherwise is to set yourself up for a lot of frustration and misunderstanding."
--Laura Hudson, Myriad Issues
Fanboys pay $125 a pop for this thing, buying out the production run months before it actually ships, and women feel exploited. I don't get it.
"To argue that cheesecake imagery is harmful to women is to argue that male desire itself is harmful to women."
--Dirk Deppey, Journalista
"Male desire is not inherently harmful, the male gaze is not inherently pernicious, and to think otherwise is to set yourself up for a lot of frustration and misunderstanding."
--Laura Hudson, Myriad Issues
Fanboys pay $125 a pop for this thing, buying out the production run months before it actually ships, and women feel exploited. I don't get it.
Well, since every red-blooded blogger has had something to say about this (available soon at a comic shop near you, except that they've apparently already sold out their production run, so if you haven't already pre-ordered it, it may be too late), I will too. Here's what I have to say:If anyone is looking for an overly-expensive birthday present for me, this is it. And no, the Justice League Unlimited Locker Room figures are not an acceptable substitute.
Thank you.
LATER: Note to Sideshow Collectibles: Consider a 6" version. This dang thing is 14" tall! That's huge! Even Barbie is only 12" tall, and that's standing up straight.
I wonder if it's worth pointing out that most artists suck at faces. Most characters, in most books, the only reason we know who they are is by the costumes they wear or the props they carry. There are exceptions, of course, and this MJ statue is so clearly MJ that she doesn't have to be holding a Spider-Man costume for us to know who she is. Part of that is attitude (the pose that has attracted so much criticism is classic hey-look-at-me MJ), but part of it is that the face is right.
Has anyone even looked at the face?
(Well, I can't call it "Friday Follies" if it isn't Friday.)
Doctors are experimenting with new surgical techniques that allow them to go in through natural openings in the body rather than abdominal incisions. "The idea is part of a broader trend to make surgery less and less invasive. In the late 1980s and early ’90s, surgeons began removing gallbladders with laparoscopic surgery, performed through a few small slits in the belly for a camera and surgical tools instead of the 10-inch incision needed for the original, open operation." (NYTimes story, may require registration.)
"I can't have someone like you here. We might need to part ways," the Christian boss (allegedly) said to the atheist soon-to-be ex-employee.
No good deed goes unpunished: The unintended consequence of increased popularity of fuel-efficient vehicles is that their owners don't pay their "fair share" of gasoline taxes, jeopardizing road maintenance and expansion projects. Oregon has been experimenting with gas pumps that query the vehicle's electronic odometer and calculate taxes based on miles driven instead of gallons purchased.
If the Free Flow of Information Act of 2007 passes, I'll be a journalist! The same federal "shield laws" that protect newspaper reporters will also apply to bloggers.
M-I-C-K-E-Y J-I-H-A-D.
Sears.com tells you that the item you've ordered for in-store pickup is in stock, whether it is or isn't.
After 88 years on the menu, you can't buy a wopburger in Louisville, CO any more.
Barack Obama, in Kansas City: "The day that this president steps down, the entire world will breathe a sigh of relief." At least he didn't fly to Syria to say it.
And, at the bottom of the news, presenting Britain's, and perhaps the world's, oldest functioning vacuum cleaner.
Doctors are experimenting with new surgical techniques that allow them to go in through natural openings in the body rather than abdominal incisions. "The idea is part of a broader trend to make surgery less and less invasive. In the late 1980s and early ’90s, surgeons began removing gallbladders with laparoscopic surgery, performed through a few small slits in the belly for a camera and surgical tools instead of the 10-inch incision needed for the original, open operation." (NYTimes story, may require registration.)
"I can't have someone like you here. We might need to part ways," the Christian boss (allegedly) said to the atheist soon-to-be ex-employee.
No good deed goes unpunished: The unintended consequence of increased popularity of fuel-efficient vehicles is that their owners don't pay their "fair share" of gasoline taxes, jeopardizing road maintenance and expansion projects. Oregon has been experimenting with gas pumps that query the vehicle's electronic odometer and calculate taxes based on miles driven instead of gallons purchased.
If the Free Flow of Information Act of 2007 passes, I'll be a journalist! The same federal "shield laws" that protect newspaper reporters will also apply to bloggers.
M-I-C-K-E-Y J-I-H-A-D.
Sears.com tells you that the item you've ordered for in-store pickup is in stock, whether it is or isn't.
After 88 years on the menu, you can't buy a wopburger in Louisville, CO any more.
Barack Obama, in Kansas City: "The day that this president steps down, the entire world will breathe a sigh of relief." At least he didn't fly to Syria to say it.
And, at the bottom of the news, presenting Britain's, and perhaps the world's, oldest functioning vacuum cleaner.
I can understand why some are upset at the price of gas. After all, we live under a fairly consistent message from Big Media that Big Oil is eeeeevil. The idea that Big Oil always lies while Big Media never does strikes me as amusing.
But what drove me up the wall this time is the following post from Wise Bread, one of several budget-living blogs I enjoy:
What she's upset about is a packet of BP-branded sunflower seeds (for planting, not eating), bearing a drawing of a little girl who wouldn't look out of place in the world of Hello Kitty. What I'm... well, upset is too strong a word, we'll say bemused by, is the fourth tag in her cluster of keywords. It contains a name not otherwise used in the post, nor is the position that person holds referred to at all. The implication is that the current oil prices are so obviously Bush's fault that it requires no explanation at all.
That's a pretty big leap to make from a package of sunflower seeds.
So, of course, I went Googling. Here's what I found:
LATER: Wouldn't want anyone to think I'm ignoring opposing viewpoints. I'm not. Some of the best unintentional comedy is found there. (Same reason I listened to Air America from time to time.) "There is simply no competitive market in this industry." Please, no more, I can't breathe.
But what drove me up the wall this time is the following post from Wise Bread, one of several budget-living blogs I enjoy:
What she's upset about is a packet of BP-branded sunflower seeds (for planting, not eating), bearing a drawing of a little girl who wouldn't look out of place in the world of Hello Kitty. What I'm... well, upset is too strong a word, we'll say bemused by, is the fourth tag in her cluster of keywords. It contains a name not otherwise used in the post, nor is the position that person holds referred to at all. The implication is that the current oil prices are so obviously Bush's fault that it requires no explanation at all.
That's a pretty big leap to make from a package of sunflower seeds.
So, of course, I went Googling. Here's what I found:
- A 2005 brochure from the Energy Information Administration breaking down the components of the cost of a gallon of gasoline
- A chart of the same information, current as of March 2007 (The government, via taxes, makes about twice what the oil companies do on each gallon sold.)
- Conoco-Phillips' attempt to answer the question, Why Are Oil Company Profits So Large? (Answer: Because the industry is large. But if you look at the profit margin, the net profit as a percentage of sales, the oil industry, while profitable, is only slightly more so than industry at large, and significantly less so than, say, computers, beverage/tobacco, or pharmaceuticals.)
- BusinessWeek's cover story from 5-15-06, "Why You Should Worry About Big Oil" (Because the easy pickin's are gone, and satisfying the world's demand for petroleum is only going to get harder -- and more expensive.)
LATER: Wouldn't want anyone to think I'm ignoring opposing viewpoints. I'm not. Some of the best unintentional comedy is found there. (Same reason I listened to Air America from time to time.) "There is simply no competitive market in this industry." Please, no more, I can't breathe.
When Bob Haney creates characters, man, they stay created. Until, that is, their whole premise for existence is turned inside-out by the next writer on the book, in this case Dennis O'Neil.
But that's what it takes to undo what Haney does.
Dorian at PostModernBarney has the details.
But that's what it takes to undo what Haney does.
Dorian at PostModernBarney has the details.
China shows its immense respect for Western intellectual property by ripping off Disneyland.
"A Superior Court jury convicted a vegan couple of murder and cruelty to children Wednesday in the death of their 6-week-old, who was fed a diet largely consisting of soy milk and apple juice."
7 World Trade Center in New York has those elevators I mentioned a few weeks ago.
"Unisex lavatories - with blurred glass walls - could help in the battle against school bullies, government guidelines for England suggest."
Wouldn't you like to be a hooper too?
"All the time I spent in that hellhole [mental institution], people were constantly trying to convince me that I felt sad because there was something wrong with my brain. But do you want to know what I really learned? ...I learned that I wasn’t sad because there was something wrong with my brain. I learned that I was sad because my life sucked."
When one of the world's foremost violinists takes his Stradivarius to the L'Enfant Plaza Metro station in downtown Washington, D.C., and plays his heart out for forty-five minutes, with his violin case open before him with a fistful of change in it... will you stop to listen? (Caution: This story may make you cry.) (I'm thinking the results might have been different if they'd tried it in the afternoon rush instead of the morning rush.)
"In a case that could set a global legal precedent for granting basic rights to apes, animal rights advocates are seeking to get the 26-year-old male chimpanzee legally declared a "person." "
"A Superior Court jury convicted a vegan couple of murder and cruelty to children Wednesday in the death of their 6-week-old, who was fed a diet largely consisting of soy milk and apple juice."
7 World Trade Center in New York has those elevators I mentioned a few weeks ago.
"Unisex lavatories - with blurred glass walls - could help in the battle against school bullies, government guidelines for England suggest."
Wouldn't you like to be a hooper too?
"All the time I spent in that hellhole [mental institution], people were constantly trying to convince me that I felt sad because there was something wrong with my brain. But do you want to know what I really learned? ...I learned that I wasn’t sad because there was something wrong with my brain. I learned that I was sad because my life sucked."
When one of the world's foremost violinists takes his Stradivarius to the L'Enfant Plaza Metro station in downtown Washington, D.C., and plays his heart out for forty-five minutes, with his violin case open before him with a fistful of change in it... will you stop to listen? (Caution: This story may make you cry.) (I'm thinking the results might have been different if they'd tried it in the afternoon rush instead of the morning rush.)
"In a case that could set a global legal precedent for granting basic rights to apes, animal rights advocates are seeking to get the 26-year-old male chimpanzee legally declared a "person." "
