Modern Chess with Wilhelm Steinitz (17 May 2013 09:20pm)

This is kind of crummy day for birthdays. I'm not Tarzan but Maureen O'Sullivan was Jane, and she was born on this day in 1911. Watergate prosecutor Archibald Cox was born in 1912. Songwriter Bob Merrill was born in 1921. Heaven's Gate cult leader Marshall Applewhite was born in 1931. If he's alive ...

Shock and Awe at The Onion (14 May 2013 06:38pm)

I read two excellent articles on The Onion today. One shocked me and the awed me. Hence the title. The first was Adidas Unveils New Running Shoe For Fleeing From Mass Shootings. It is a pretty standard Onion story. At least, it is until the last sentence: NEW YORK—With the launch Tuesday of ...

The Gertrude Stein Scandal (13 May 2013 07:37pm)

I can't believe all this talk of Benghazi and the IRS targeting of conservative political groups. Has Washington lost sight of what a real scandal looks like? I am talking about plagiarism, of course. Yes, the president is cool. He sounds just like he's making up the words as he goes along. But no!...

Hell is Other Family Members (29 Apr 2013 09:34pm)

Stephen Fry tells the story of his close encounter with the Mormon Church. ...

Obama at Correspondents Dinner (28 Apr 2013 11:05pm)

If you haven't seen this, I thought it was funny as hell: But it has been a long day. ...

Lesbians, Short Hair, and the Frumpy Years (22 Apr 2013 02:15pm)

Last night, I watched this video 24 Hours of Madness. It is some kind of British celebrity game show. You know the kind where everyone goes on just to show that they are more clever and charming than the Yankees? And I got sucked in. It was loads of fun. But if you are going to watch it, fast forwar...

Witches and Hippies (21 Apr 2013 09:25pm)

This video parody of Dragnet is very funny with some clever computer effects. But what I think is most interesting about it is the original stuff that sadly very few people in a society can see at the time: how law enforcement is mostly just cultural bias, and in-group and out-group signifying. The ...

Missing Cat/Dog/People Signs (21 Apr 2013 04:25pm)

I rarely torture you all with my own poetry but this rhymes! And yes, I know what you'll say, "It's bad enough that this is all about death; do you really have to end it by saying that death is a good thing?" Well, yes, as a matter of fact I do. I'm no fan of death, but there are a great many things...

Will You Still Need Me When I'm 116? (19 Apr 2013 07:54am)

It is another weak birthday list. But let's get on with it. Founding father Roger Sherman was born on this day in 1721. Eliot Ness was born in 1903. Darrin number two on Bewitched, Dick Sargent, was born in 1930. Jayne Mansfield was born in 1933. And Dudley Moore was born in 1935. Stanley Fish, who...

Ayman al-Zawahiri at TED (01 Apr 2013 12:39pm)

Last week, al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri gave a thought provoking talk at TED (sorry, no video yet) about the changing face of global terrorism. In the talk titled "Terror At A Crossroads," al-Zawahiri discussed how terrorists can remain relevant in an increasingly globalized world. It isn't har...

Bed Bath & Beyond Lie (20 Mar 2013 09:28am)

Ever wonder about all those Bed Bath & Beyond walls of towels? Via Buzz Feed, it is all a lie: ...

Have You Seen This Nigerian Prince? (17 Mar 2013 11:02am)

The Toronto Star reported last week that a man pleaded guilty to defrauding $32 million from North American lawyers. What is great about this story is the scam. Also: it couldn't happen to a nice group of people. But most of all, the culprit is Emmanuel Ekhator—Wait for it!—a Nigerian! ...

California Condors Love Puppets (14 Mar 2013 12:07pm)

Puppets make everything better—even in science! At the San Diego Zoo's program to repopulate the California Condor, they are using a puppet to rear the young ones. Why? Because everyone loves puppets! Actually, no. They don't want the little condors imprinting humans as mothers. This will allo...

The Krugman Times (12 Mar 2013 04:20pm)

Vincent Woo, who claims to be "a t-shirt hawker at everlane.com[1]" has created quite a zany website, The Krugman Times. You can see a screen capture above. What the website does is grab the front page of the New York Times, replace all the images with pictures of Paul Krugman, the author with Paul...

Meaningless Chess (09 Mar 2013 11:22pm)

It has been a strange and hectic day today, so I am just going to offer up a few thoughts. Mickey Spillane was born today in 1918. I more or less knew that. What I didn't know was that he only died a few years ago—in 2006 at 88. He was a favorite of Ayn Rand, who had a great love for pulp jun...

Fucktard in Sign Language (06 Mar 2013 09:55am)

You all know how I love the word "fucktard." Yesterday, I came upon this video that shows how to sign it. And it's fun to do. Enjoy! ...

Daily Beast Likes My Video (02 Mar 2013 11:29am)

When I first created my Zero Dark Thirty trailer parody, I was very pleased. For the first time, something I did came out exactly the way I expected. But more than that, I thought this was the parody that the film was begging for. The trumpeting of their good reviews seemed to require replacing them...

Moraesesque (27 Feb 2013 02:19pm)

Ben Bernanke spoke before the Senate yesterday. And as much as anyone can tell, given that only people who work at the place can fully comprehend "Fed Speak," he seemed to be saying that we shouldn't worry about the deficit right now and that we could use some stimulus. And you know who that sounds ...

Cthulhu in New Jersey (18 Feb 2013 09:02pm)

And speaking of George Washington dying from blood letting: the sea lamprey. The photo on the left is apparently of a large sea lamprey from the waters of New Jersey. These things are parasites that latch onto fish and literally bleed them to death—just like the best physicians of the 18th cen...

I Feel So Safe! (12 Feb 2013 05:25pm)

I have had a very bad cough for almost three months now. I went to doctor and she told me if it didn't go away in another month, I should come back. I figure I have tuberculosis and there is just a conspiracy of silence because everyone thinks that I don't want to die. The fools! I laugh death. I gu...

Oh My Marriage! (31 Jan 2013 09:19am)

I know that not long ago, I checked Wikipedia to find out if Jim Nabors was openly gay. And as I recall, there was really nothing about it. Of course, I assumed he was. I don't know why. There are those stories about Rock Hudson. Everyone assumed. And maybe it is just that no one cared, Nabors being...

About Jonathan Bernstein (22 Jan 2013 06:34pm)

[Jonathan Bernstein writes for various parts of the Washington Post. But his name always links to Robert Samuelson's page, and regular readers will know that we don't much care for Mr. Samuelson. But we do care for Mr. Bernstein, so we've decided to make an "About Jonathan Bernstein" page for him. I...

The President of Vice (21 Jan 2013 11:37am)

One of my very favorite features of The Onion is its portrayal of Joe Biden as a kind of working class lady's man who has made it big but who still holds on to his working class roots. It's kind of a high class version of Ronnie Dobbs, the regular character on the Cops like show "Fuzz" on Mr. Show. ...

Pony Tail (17 Jan 2013 02:01pm)

This 7 second video shows how to create a pony tail with no fuss. It wouldn't surprise me if some American high tech or pharmaceutical company already has the patent. So watch the video now before our corporate overlords force it to be taken down. Come to think of it, I'm surprised no company has ...

U.S. High School Students Falling Behind China (14 Jan 2013 09:36pm)

You see, this is where America is really lagging: U.S. High School Students Falling Behind China, Many Animals In Basic Object Permanence...

Dog School (11 Jan 2013 12:43pm)

I don't see how this video has not gone viral. It is of a 6 month old lab mix teaching an 8 week old puppy how to walk down the stairs. At least, I think that's what's going on. It is very inspiring: H/T Sarah Kliff ...

Wildebeest Road Crossing in Sweden (05 Jan 2013 02:22pm)

There's a joke going around Sweden, "Why did the wildebeest cross the road? Because it tastes like chicken!" That joke kills me! But that is probably because I made it up. (I think I'm just high-larious.) You see, there is important wildebeest news coming out of Sweden. The management of the Parken ...

Douchebag Named Word of the Year! (01 Jan 2013 07:17pm)

Michael J.W. Stickings, the founder and head of The Reaction (where I write) is not what I normally think of as a funny guy. Just look at that picture. Doesn't he look like a guy who beat you up in high school? Yet he was pretty funny today. He put together a new yearsy kind of article where he (fol...

Shortest 2012 Year in Review (31 Dec 2012 08:53pm)

John Fugelsang and Frank Conniff present, Shortest 2012 Year in Review Show. It is very funny. My favorite line was from Conniff, "I spent all this past week buying and hoarding every Twinkie I could find, and it was weird: I just found out the company went out of business." I am struck by how sim...

12.5 Years (26 Dec 2012 07:40pm)

The following video has over 4 million views, so you may well have seen it. I'm only putting it up so that I don't lose it. Noah Kalina is a photographer (he seems to do collages). He took a picture of himself every day from the age of 19. He is now 32. You get to watch him grow (?) from a boy into ...

Give the Jew Girl Toys (25 Dec 2012 02:00am)

In my long standing commitment to ruining every holiday, here is Sarah Silverman performing Give The Jew Girl Toys: ...

Fascinating (16 Dec 2012 04:37pm)

Andrea sent me this photo because she knows what a burden I carry being such a fascinating person. The expectations are so great. People call me up and say, "You're such a fascinating person, entertain me!" I do my best. Strangely, people don't accept my arguments that the history of English Languag...

Avik Roy Heard My Plea! (12 Dec 2012 09:34pm)

I don't know if you have noticed, but I've been feeling really down the last few days. But I just noticed something that really improved my mood: Avik Roy tweeted my last rant about him: A lefty blogger: "I want to rip off your scrotum and suffocate you with it. Cock sucking plutocrat bastard!" fra...

The Tweets of Frank Conniff (09 Dec 2012 05:30pm)

I am a big MST3K fan, as you can see by the fact that I call Mystery Science Theater 3000 "MST3K." I never really understood the character TV's Frank, but I've long thought that the actor Frank Conniff is a brilliant man. If I hadn't already thought that, however, I certainly would have after subscr...

A Bigger Spoon (08 Dec 2012 12:44am)

Even by the standards of That Mitchell and Web Look, this is very strange. But funny: Of course, it is from their earlier series, The Mitchell and Webb Situation. ...

Mr. Burns Deals with Election Results (06 Dec 2012 12:32am)

I don't know how old this is, but I just saw it for the first time. So watch it. It's very funny. Notice that there are three binders on the floor labeled "women." There is a book titled, "Nate Silver Can't Add." Also, "Think of the economy as a cliff and the rich man is the driver. If you don't ...

Happy Lamb (26 Nov 2012 02:39pm)

I just had oral surgery, so even though I have much on my mind that I'd like to write about, I probably won't until tonight at least. In the mean time, here is a picture of a happy lamb courtesy of Cute Overload: ...

GOB Tampons (25 Nov 2012 09:11am)

Will sent me to this: ...

Bathroom Queue (23 Nov 2012 10:21am)

I was recently at the local CVS, and I saw the following sign on the bathroom door. It seemed very strange to me. Unless you read the fine print, this is very confusing. It certainly looks like CVS is offering to text you when the bathroom is available. What's next? Those little buzzer devices they ...

A Real Happy Thanksgiving (22 Nov 2012 08:52am)

Hindsight is 20-20. This is the way the original Thanksgiving should have been: ...

And a Little Child Will Lead (19 Nov 2012 07:08pm)

Isaiah 11:6 tells us: The wolf will live with the lamb, The leopard will lie down with the goat, The calf and the lion and the yearling together; And a little child will lead them. That time has come my friends. Jennifer O'Connell has posted an email sent from R— (Do you feel like you are in...

A Better World for Nothing (17 Nov 2012 07:19pm)

I got a free copy of Funny Times sent to me. It's not bad. It's clearly geared toward an older audience, but it definitely has its moments. Like this cartoon: ...

Ayn Bran (08 Nov 2012 12:29pm)

Best line: "Like my books, every box of Ayn Bran is unnecessarily long." This comes via Digby: ...

One Vote Doesn't Matter (05 Nov 2012 04:15pm)

It doesn't, if you think about it: ...

Will Ferrell Will Do Anything to Get You to Vote (04 Nov 2012 04:29pm)

How can you resist? ...

Romney! Obama! You're Making This 4-Year-Old Cry! (01 Nov 2012 10:12am)

This comes to me via Richard K. Barry over at The Reaction in an article titled, I So Totally Relate. So do I my friend; so do I. ...

Nightly Crush: Erin Kissane (30 Oct 2012 09:30pm)

You know I will always tell you the truth. And the truth right now is that I am following Erin Kissane on Twitter only because I think she is really cute. Part of it is the hair color. Of course. No question there. But I've seen pictures of her with different hair colors and she is equally adorable....

A Message from The Greatest Generation (29 Oct 2012 03:49pm)

From Voters Rising: ...

Zomney: He Needs Brains (28 Oct 2012 11:08pm)

Joss Whedon has released a ad in favor of Romney because, "He will put this country back on the path to the zombie apocalypse." Zomney 2012!...

Newsweek Subscription Deal (22 Oct 2012 02:14pm)

As you may have heard, Newsweek is going out of business at the end of the year. But Jeff Smith notes that the "Best Deal!" for a Newsweek subscription is still two years: ...

The Thomas Friedman Game (17 Oct 2012 08:04am)

Thomas Friedman has written another column calling for a Sensible Centrist who will tell America the truth. He notes that if we don't shape up, "We could go the way of Greece or Japan." This is an odd pairing. He means to say that our economy could go all haywire. The problem is that while the Greec...

Economist Joke (16 Oct 2012 08:09am)

Dean Baker provides us with an excellent joke to start the day. It made me laugh more than The Daily Show (which was quite funny last night) and The Colbert Report (which wasn't that good). I love economics humor. There ought to be more of this. Economist jokes are easy to create. Question: How ma...

Latinos Con Romney (14 Oct 2012 01:46pm)

I want to believe it is a new kind of cannibalistic taco: Photo from Liliana Segura tweet. ...

Get That Girl a Heart! (07 Oct 2012 10:00pm)

I guess her wish was what told the doctors she needed a new heart: ...

Weathergirl Goes Rogue (01 Oct 2012 02:26pm)

This is funny and informative. Go coal! ...

Wake the Fuck Up (28 Sep 2012 05:21pm)

I hear this is from the same people who brought you the great Sarah Silverman Let My People Vote 2012 video. This time we get Samuel L. Jackson, who happens to say "Mother fucker!" better than anyone on the planet. I don't have much to say other than that this is also a fucking great video: Also: ...

My Name is Alberto Asenjo... (27 Sep 2012 12:04am)

Everybody loves a Spanish badass! Alberto Casillas Asenjo is the owner of the Prado Cafe in Madrid. During the clash between protesters and police, he stood defiantly in his doorway. Click on over, the video is great. What most strikes me is that he is clearly afraid. And yet, he stays. That's true...

Noah Smith on Econo Trolls (25 Sep 2012 12:00pm)

Noah Smith is a very smart and often funny young economist. He runs the Noahpinion Blog, which has a different tag line just about every day. I keep up with his blog, but I don't spend that much time on it because it is largely over my head. However, he has a better understanding of libertarians and...

Get Nana A Gun (24 Sep 2012 07:42pm)

This is the most awesome fucking thing I've seen in weeks: Sarah Silverman's "Let My People Vote 2012 - Get Nana A Gun." ...

Clint Eastwood Talks to More Inanimate Objects (24 Sep 2012 01:20am)

I don't think people appreciate just how much of a Luddite I am. I am a pretty good programmer—c++, php, all that—but I have little idea what things like Twitter are all about. I do, however, know that tweets are occasionally hilarious. Here is a screen shot of one by Bill Maher yesterda...

Vote Republican (23 Sep 2012 11:26am)

You're getting sleepy... ...

Chia Romney! (22 Sep 2012 09:11pm)

Will was at K-Mart tonight and he sent me a couple of pictures of... Chia Obama and Chia Romney. This is part of the Chia Freedom of Choice™ series. You aren't limited to Obama and Romney. Oh no! There is a Chia Gingrich and a Chia Ron Paul too. Sadly, no Chia Rick Perry, Michele Bachmann, or...

You've Been Outsourced! (21 Sep 2012 01:09pm)

The ad for the new season of The Simpsons is really great. A couple of things stand out. First, there is Homer's summation of democracy in America, "Oh man, not another election! Why do we have to choose our leaders? Isn't that what we have the Supreme Court for?" One of the best things about The ...

What You Think (20 Sep 2012 10:12pm)

I think this is good advice. But my thinking about consciousness and metaphysics—especially epistemology—makes me believe that better advice would be, "Don't Believe Anything You Think." ...

"I'm Disinclined to Acquiesce to your Request" (20 Sep 2012 01:22am)

That's what they told me when I specifically requested to be reminded when it was International Talk Like a Pirate Day. It means "No." And so I missed it. Finally, the perfect holiday: no business closures and... Pirates! ...

Tanghi Argentini (17 Sep 2012 06:57pm)

A friend sent me a bunch of links to some excellent short films. One of them was very sweet and it got me thinking of a film I very much like, Tanghi Argentini, which is on the excellent A Collection of 2007 Academy Award Nominated Short Films (2007). Here it is for you to enjoy: I want to be that...

Kristen Schaal at WGA (16 Sep 2012 08:20pm)

There is surprisingly little Kristen Schaal on the internet other than her stuff on The Daily Show. The bit below is a very nice exception. She apparently hosted the WGA awards last year. I particularly liked this part: Winning a Whale's Tail is a huge honor. The winners tonight owe a tremendous de...

Beautiful, Intelligent, Learned IV (16 Sep 2012 07:22pm)

I find the whole Beautiful, Intelligent, Learned series a bit embarrassing. So a number of women just sit in the back of my mind waiting for me to get the nerve to write an article. It isn't that I'm embarrassed about them. It is that I think I will show myself to be the small minded pedant that I k...

Noogie for Ezra (31 Aug 2012 03:29pm)

I like Ezra Klein. Really. I've attacked him on a number of occasions, but overall, he's a smart and insightful guy. But he's also a numbers nerd who seems about as comfortable in his body as your average 13 year old rocket builder. So I thought it was very funny this morning when I read Klein wri...

You Sexually Harassing Me? (26 Aug 2012 09:49pm)

Voodoo Mama! ...

48/2 + 7 < 37 (23 Aug 2012 01:48am)

First things first: in preparing this picture, I had to crop out the copy of Victor Navasky's history of the Hollywood blacklist Naming Names from Ms. Goldberg's left. And this is important, because what I'm about to say is not just about the objectification of women. In fact, it isn't even mostly a...

Funny Tombstones (18 Aug 2012 03:06pm)

A friend sent me to a humorous tombstone. It is supposed to be Russell J. Larsen, although I've found a few different ones said to be his: Five Rules for Men to Follow for a Happy Life: It's important to have a woman who helps at home, cooks from time to time, cleans up, and has a job.It's importan...

New York 1938 (12 Aug 2012 11:08pm)

This is via someone named Spocko (If this proves how unhip I am: you're surprised?!) via the always wonderful digby. It is the funniest thing I've seen since last night when I was gorging on Firesign Theater. But still: this is very funny. This shows how Scientology and Objectivism were born. And th...

Waiting for the Firesign Theater or Someone Like Them (11 Aug 2012 10:22pm)

"You wanna hear me rap? I saw the best minds of my generation..." That is a line from the first Firesign Theater album I ever heard (The first they recorded!), Waiting for the Electrician or Someone Like Him from 1968. I was looking for something to listen to while I made dinner tonight, and I came ...

Did He Build That? (08 Aug 2012 03:42pm)

You may have seen the original of this picture where small business owner Ray Gaster proclaims, "I built this business without gov't help. Obama can Kiss my ass." Of course, the fact that Gaster owns a lumber yard, means he's received lots over government help in the form of low cost lumber resource...

Komodo Dragon (06 Aug 2012 02:55am)

I got into bed this evening and put on Lizard Kings: On the Trail of the Monitor Lizard, a NATO program about this very intelligent genus of lizards that includes the Komodo dragon. This reminded me of an old Bob and Ray routine that is one of the funniest things ever. So I got out of bed and listen...

Internet Suffering (04 Aug 2012 12:25pm)

My friend Ananda sent me a collection of photos from India. Many of them involve grammar errors, but could easily be from the United States or Kingdom. One admonishes people in Ludhiana, "Please don't encourage baggers." Another is a clever drunk driving sign, "After whisky [sic] driving risky." I'l...

Shocking Display of Liberal Media Bias (Or Something) (21 Jul 2012 03:00pm)

This is wonderfully silly and delightfully funny. And at only 40 seconds, you should watch it: The interesting thing about this is that I feel for the conservative blogger. I'm pretty careful about looking things up, but I can totally see myself embarrassed in this way. And from a conservative poi...

Not Exactly Brain Surgery (18 Jul 2012 11:51pm)

This week I did a little job for a rocket scientist. It reminded me of this skit from The Mitchell & Webb Look about a meeting between two very intelligent (if obnoxious) men. Enjoy: Which reminds me of a joke: A guy walks into a bar and orders three martinis. The bartender says, "You know yo...

Ezra Klein Teaches Punditry in One Lesson (18 Jul 2012 07:30pm)

Ezra Klein has a very nerdy sense of humor, but sometimes that's just what's needed. In an article, Want to be a political pundit? Keep this in your pocket, he provides the following table for what to say about something the President says that you know nothing about: ...

Be Nice to America (15 Jul 2012 01:10pm)

...

Crab v. Dachshund (02 Jul 2012 03:49pm)

Unlike most videos that feature dogs, I do not find this adorable. But it is very interesting: What we see here is gross difference in perspective. The Dachshund is playing—it might as well be chasing a ball. But for the crab, this is an existential conflict. Even if the dog means it no harm...

Absurdity Today (01 Jul 2012 11:17am)

Julianna Forlano, a stand-up comedian out of Brooklyn, has created a regular (every 2-4 weeks) YouTube show called Absurdity Today or "Ironic News Report." She's been doing it for a bit over a year with good results. Her shtick is low key sarcasm—a refreshing change of pace from the fiercely p...

Sex, Photos, and Blues (22 Jun 2012 01:09pm)

I hate Norton Security Suite. Don't buy it. Get Microsoft Security Essentials—it is far better and free. However, I think this Norton commercial, Grandma was a Hottie, is really good: But it's no reason to buy their terrible product....

What the Fins Think of Elephants (08 Jun 2012 11:00am)

I read this joke in Bad Samaritans. It is a good example of how you can find a joke funny because you learn something rather than because it reinforces your knowledge. Here is my telling: A German, Frenchman, American, and Fin are asked to write a book about elephants. The German, being very thorou...

Cat Video (05 Jun 2012 09:41pm)

I'm sorry, but I just really like this commercial: If you don't, you're a horrible person. ...

Thank You Mom (13 May 2012 11:21am)

Happy Mothers' Day! ...

Beautiful, Intelligent, Learned III (09 May 2012 01:11pm)

I thought it about time to go back to my sort of sexist hobby of ogling at female public intellectuals. In my defense, I have wanted to include men because (1) this isn't about sex and (2) Chris Hayes is cute as a button. (Sadly, I'm afraid that Hayes would not make the cut—he falls a little s...

Keep Calm and Carry On (04 May 2012 09:07pm)

I thought I was way behind in posting here, but I see I did something late last night or this morning (I am losing track of my life): a rant about Peter Beinart's book. Anyway, I found this movie from a list of favorite videos of C.G.P. Grey (see link on the right). I find this uplifting: keep calm ...

The Giant Tortoise Protector (02 May 2012 06:16pm)

I'm kind of busy with other stuff at the moment—mostly trying to figure out how to use a teleprompter without looking like I'm insane. But I came upon this great little video via WonkBlog. Check it out; it's only a couple of minutes long: "I've been offered millions... And I've said no." My...

Mystery Video (01 May 2012 11:44am)

Will sent me this. He is very computer savvy, but for some reason, instead of sending me a link, he sent me embed code. I'm guessing that it is the Correspondents Dinner. And yes, I could have extracted the URL directly from it, but why would I do that when I can whine here? Update I'm so smart. ...

History Channel (23 Apr 2012 09:40pm)

At last, someone has said it: By the way, this guy has a lot of great videos. Go subscribe. ...

More Than Ever We Need Billy Bob Neck (23 Apr 2012 12:24pm)

After 190 videos spanning more than five years, Billy Bob Neck is no more. Earlier this month, Paul Day—the man behind this inspired creation—posted the following video: Many people, myself included, thought this was just a ruse. You see, Billy Bob Neck went away before: he was rapture...

Seagullible (01 Apr 2012 11:38am)

One day when I was at college, a classmate asked, "Did you know the word gullible is not in the Dictionary?" Like an idiot, I said, "Really?!" It took me a half hour to get the joke. I am a gullible person—or at least very trusting. So I hate April Fools Day. I'll believe anything. But I assum...

Deconstructing Shaggy (31 Mar 2012 10:48pm)

I am working on a number of articles: Michael Erard's wonderful Um... Lope de Vega's Fuent Ovejuna Synoptic Gospels and The Case Against Q But until I get to them, here is That Mitchell and Web Look deconstructing Scooby-Doo: Who is that nephew? Lucky you have me to keep you informed about the im...

What Will You Find? (26 Mar 2012 05:57pm)

This is via Suzy Khimm over at WonkBlog. I hate Mondays, not because they are the first day of the work week, but because the Sonoma County Library is closed on. Happy Monday. ...

Dylan Moran on Americans (22 Mar 2012 09:25pm)

I'm rather fond of the old British sitcom Black Books, even though it isn't that good. It is mostly a vehicle for Dylan Moran who is brilliant. Here he is talking about Americans: ...

DJ Flula Remixes Celebrities! (15 Mar 2012 01:44pm)

I am working diligently to create a series of videos. But with videos like the one below, it is hard not to get discouraged. The guy is a total freak—in a good way. ...

Jeopardy! (08 Mar 2012 09:54pm)

It is hard for me to watch Jeopardy![1] The problem is that I'm pretty good at it. The number of answers I can easily spit out would put me above the average player, and the number of answers that are on the tip of my tongue would likely put me among the best. Of course, Jeopardy! is not exactly a ...

The Disappointment of Christmas (01 Mar 2012 06:45pm)

Paula Poundstone is such a freak. Here she is on one of her many videos that she produces for her site: ...

Big Hollywood Dicks (01 Mar 2012 02:15pm)

Samuel L. Jackson has been on the cover of Ebony Magazine many times. But last week's cover really annoyed me. This isn't so much because of this particular cover. It is how often I see men (and women to a lesser extent) on the covers of magazines chomping on a big fat cigar. If it were only that ci...

Mitt Romney: No We Can't! (01 Mar 2012 10:43am)

This is taken from The Daily Show. Romney said, "[Obama] raised the national debt; I will cut, cap, and balance the budget. He passed Obamacare; I will repeal Obamacare. He lost our triple-A credit rating; I will restore our triple-A credit rating." Jon Stewart continued, "He killed Osama Bin Laden;...

Maria Bamford (29 Feb 2012 09:03pm)

I really like Maria Bamford. She's brilliant and not enough people know about her. That seems to be the case with the comedians I find most impressive. I like Louis C.K. but what's the big deal? Note: comments turned off as spam prevention measure. ...

Painful to Watch (19 Feb 2012 08:40pm)

Many years ago, when I was paying a fortune to put down my ideas on 16mm film (Forty bucks to develop and print 100 feet of film—less than 3 minutes!) I had the idea of doing a video of just a guy talking into the camera, saying interesting things. At least I thought they were interesting: com...

Will Ferrell's Old Milwaukee (07 Feb 2012 11:51pm)

I had heard that there was a Will Ferrell commercial for the greatest beer company ever: Pabst! Pabst Blue Ribbon! Okay: Pabst Brewing Company. And it does just so happen that Heineken sucks. Anyway, one of Pabst's worst beer offerings is Old Milwaukee. This video consists of a number of these Will ...

Hard Work, Low Pay (25 Jan 2012 12:32pm)

I present the following video (a catch from Ezra Klein's Wonkbook) as an illustration of what it is like to be a freelance writer: lots of work for little pay. This young man made a $100 bet with his father than he could do a backflip every day in 2011. Watch it. It is really interesting. Shockingly...

They Don't Make Pens Like They Used To (21 Dec 2011 12:30pm)

Via The Daily Telegraph, a pen held inside a woman's stomach for 25 years still writes. There are about five things from this story that are amazing. Just check out Rachel Maddow's three minute summary: ...

I Miss Daylight Savings (11 Nov 2011 02:12pm)

This is 5:00 pm, last night. I miss my evenings! ...

Beautiful, Intelligent, Learned II (01 Nov 2011 01:07pm)

Ladies and gentlemen: Melissa Harris-Perry. I know her from MSNBC news shows where she is often an analyst and sometimes a guest anchor. And as I've stated before, I wasn't that taken with her at first. But like many things (from movies to food to people), those I like best I often started out by no...

Beautiful, Intelligent, Learned (13 Oct 2011 08:41am)

I'm thinking of creating an archive of information about beautiful, intelligent, learned women. I don't think this is sexist, because it seems I am forever talking about beautiful men, although admittedly, with a sense of bitterness and despair. For example, Geoffrey Nunberg, who is better looking, ...

Little Blue Riding Hood (06 Oct 2011 12:05pm)

The Edmonton Public Library produced this delightful puppet show as a public service announcement. It is very effective and funny. ...

The Amazing Usain Bolts (17 Jun 2011 10:46pm)

I've been editing the first act of the Post-Post Modern Comedy Hour this evening. It involves an old man (someone like me) racing a college sprinter. I was going to use the 50-meter dash, but there doesn't seem to be much of that, so I changed it to the 100-meter dash. In my research, I came upon th...

Voyeurs & Exhibitionists (08 Jun 2011 09:14pm)

I read the most amazing thing in The Chronicle today, "Six percent of Americans over 18 have sent a nude or near-nude image of themselves to someone else and 15 percent have received one, according to the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project." I'll have to think about this more, bu...

Billy Bob Neck in Heaven? (28 May 2011 07:31pm)

Here is Billy Bob Neck's most recent video. At 1:37, he disappears—obviously raptured (a man like Billy Bob). The remaining 13:35 is just his empty seat so don't wait for it.[1] My question is: does this mean that Paul Day has decided not to do Billy Bob Neck any more? After three years of ...

Dark and Silent (15 Sep 2010 07:01pm)

It is dark here. The moon but a sliver sharp enough to sew. I see it reflected clearly on the lake—its surface calmer than stretched linen. And silent. Even, it seems, the raccoons are gone. Field mice a distant memory. My only light—shining down on The Passionate Shepherd to His Love fr...

To Seth on his Eighteenth Birthday (14 Jan 2010 10:58am)

When I was eighteen years old, I wrote my first song: a "gift" for a friend who was graduating from high school. The chorus of the song was: “Good-bye graduate / It’s the start of the end.” At the time, I thought this was very funny. It had other gems like: “You’ll get a job and work for Dodge / The...

Total Articles: 116