50 years of art. 25 books. Two books per year for 12 1/2 years

I was an enormous Charles Schultz fan growing up; had a huge Peanuts collection that seems to have gotten misplaced over the years. Now I can replace the entire lot collection in one fell swoop: The Complete Peanuts

From the publisher:

This first volume, covering the first two and a quarter years of the strip, will be of particular fascination to PEANUTS aficionados worldwide: Although there have been literally hundreds of PEANUTS books published, many of the strips from the series’ first two or three years have never been collected before — in large part because they showed a young Schulz working out the kinks in his new strip and include some characterizations and designs that are quite different from the cast we’re all familiar with. (Among other things, three major cast members — Schroeder, Lucy, and Linus — initially show up as infants and only “grow” into their final “mature” selves as the months go by. Even Snoopy debuts as a puppy!) Thus THE COMPLETE PEANUTS offers a unique chance to see a master of the artform refine his skills and solidify his universe, day by day, week by week, month by month.

PEANUTS is one of the most successful comic strips in the history of the medium as well as one of the most acclaimed strips ever published. (In 1999, a jury of comics scholars and critics voted it the 2nd greatest comic strip of the 20th century — second only to George Herriman’s Krazy Kat, a verdict Schulz himself cheerfully endorsed.) Charles Schulz’s characters — Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy, Linus, Schroeder, and so many more — have become American icons. A poll in 2002 found Peanuts to be one of the most recognizable cartoon properties in the world, recognized by 94 percent of the total U.S. consumer market and a close second only to Mickey Mouse (96 percent), and higher than other familiar cartoon properties like Spider-Man (75 percent) or the Simpsons (87 percent). In T.V. Guide’s “Top 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All-Time” list, Charlie Brown and Snoopy ranked #8.

Sign me up!

via linkfilter

Posted at 07:02 AM in Books, Humor | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

The Mother of all Google searches: we+know+he+has+weapons+of+mass+destruction

via Tom Tomorrow

Posted at 12:46 AM in Current Affairs, Media, Politics, War/Defense | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

This came out one year ago today. It was very much overlooked. IMHO, its much more significant in the "war against terrorism" than the goings on in Iraq.

(CNN) – The following is a partial transcript of Thursday's court hearing in which Richard Reid was sentenced to life in prison for his confessed plan to try and blow up a jetliner with explosives he had hidden in his shoes. The exchange is between Reid and Judge William Young.

RICHARD REID: I start by praising Allah because life today is no good. I bear witness to this and he alone is right to be worshiped. And I bear witness that Muhammad Sa'laat Alayhi as-Salaam is his last prophet and messenger who is sent to all of mankind for guidance, with the sound guidance for everyone.

Concerning what the Court said? I admit, I admit my actions and I further, I further state that I done them.

JUDGE WILLIAM YOUNG: I didn't hear the last. I admit my actions and then what did you say?

REID: I further admit my allegiance to Osama bin Laden, to Islam, and to the religion of Allah. With regards to what you said about killing innocent people, I will say one thing. Your government has killed 2 million children in Iraq. If you want to think about something, against 2 million, I don't see no comparison.

Your government has sponsored the rape and torture of Muslims in the prisons of Egypt and Turkey and Syria and Jordan with their money and with their weapons. I don't know, see what I done as being equal to rape and to torture, or to the deaths of the two million children in Iraq.

So, for this reason, I think I ought not apologize for my actions. I am at war with your country. I'm at war with them not for personal reasons but because they have murdered more than, so many children and they have oppressed my religion and they have oppressed people for no reason except that they say we believe in Allah.

This is the only reason that America sponsors Egypt. It's the only reason they sponsor Turkey. It's the only reason they back Israel.

As far as the sentence is concerned, it's in your hand. Only really it is not even in your hand. It's in Allah's hand. I put my trust in Allah totally and I know that he will give victory to his religion. And he will give victory to those who believe and he will destroy those who wish to oppress the people because they believe in Allah.

So you can judge and I leave you to judge. And I don't mind. This is all I have to say. And I bear witness to Muhammad this is Allah's message.

YOUNG: Mr. Richard C. Reid, hearken now to the sentence the Court imposes upon you.

On counts 1, 5 and 6 the Court sentences you to life in prison in the custody of the United States Attorney General. On counts 2, 3, 4 and 7, the Court sentences you to 20 years in prison on each count, the sentence on each count to run consecutive one with the other. That's 80 years.

On Count 8 the Court sentences you to the mandatory 30 years consecutive to the 80 years just imposed. The Court imposes upon you on each of the eight counts a fine of $250,000 for the aggregate fine of $2 million.

The Court accepts the government's recommendation with respect to restitution and orders restitution in the amount of $298.17 to Andre Bousquet and $5,784 to American Airlines.

The Court imposes upon you the $800 special assessment.

The Court imposes upon you five years supervised release simply because the law requires it. But the life sentences are real life sentences so I need not go any further.

This is the sentence that is provided for by our statutes. It is a fair and a just sentence. It is a righteous sentence. Let me explain this to you.

We are not afraid of any of your terrorist co-conspirators, Mr. Reid. We are Americans. We have been through the fire before. There is all too much war talk here. And I say that to everyone with the utmost respect.

Here in this court where we deal with individuals as individuals, and care for individuals as individuals, as human beings we reach out for justice.

You are not an enemy combatant. You are a terrorist. You are not a soldier in any war. You are a terrorist. To give you that reference, to call you a soldier gives you far too much stature. Whether it is the officers of government who do it or your attorney who does it, or that happens to be your view, you are a terrorist.

And we do not negotiate with terrorists. We do not treat with terrorists. We do not sign documents with terrorists.

We hunt them down one by one and bring them to justice.

So war talk is way out of line in this court. You're a big fellow. But you're not that big. You're no warrior. I know warriors. You are a terrorist. A species of criminal guilty of multiple attempted murders.

In a very real sense Trooper Santiago had it right when first you were taken off that plane and into custody and you wondered where the press and where the TV crews were and you said you're no big deal. You're no big deal.

What your counsel, what your able counsel and what the equally able United States attorneys have grappled with and what I have as honestly as I know how tried to grapple with, is why you did something so horrific. What was it that led you here to this courtroom today? I have listened respectfully to what you have to say. And I ask you to search your heart and ask yourself what sort of unfathomable hate led you to do what you are guilty and admit you are guilty of doing.

And I have an answer for you. It may not satisfy you. But as I search this entire record it comes as close to understanding as I know.

It seems to me you hate the one thing that to us is most precious. You hate our freedom. Our individual freedom. Our individual freedom to live as we choose, to come and go as we choose, to believe or not believe as we individually choose.

Here, in this society, the very winds carry freedom. They carry it everywhere from sea to shining sea. It is because we prize individual freedom so much that you are here in this beautiful courtroom. So that everyone can see, truly see that justice is administered fairly, individually, and discretely.

It is for freedom's seek that your lawyers are striving so vigorously on your behalf and have filed appeals, will go on in their, their representation of you before other judges. We care about it. Because we all know that the way we treat you, Mr. Reid, is the measure of our own liberties.

Make no mistake though. It is yet true that we will bear any burden; pay any price, to preserve our freedoms.

Look around this courtroom. Mark it well. The world is not going to long remember what you or I say here. Day after tomorrow it will be forgotten. But this, however, will long endure. Here, in this courtroom, and courtrooms all across America, the American people will gather to see that justice, individual justice, justice, not war, individual justice is in fact being done.

The very President of the United States through his officers will have to come into courtrooms and lay out evidence on which specific matters can be judged, and juries of citizens will gather to sit and judge that evidence democratically, to mold and shape and refine our sense of justice.

See that flag, Mr. Reid? That's the flag of the United States of America. That flag will fly there long after this is all forgotten. That flag still stands for freedom. You know it always will. Custody, Mr. Officer. Stand him down.

REID: That flag will be brought down on the Day of Judgment and you will see in front of your Lord and my Lord and then we will know. (Whereupon the defendant was removed from the courtroom.)

YOUNG: We'll recess. All rise.

Source:
Reid: 'I am at war with your country'
http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/01/31/reid.transcript/

Friday, January 31, 2003 Posted: 11:10 AM EST (1610 GMT)

Posted at 12:05 AM in Current Affairs, Media, War/Defense | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

We mentioned last week that it was only a matter of time before Google came ahuntin some Booble.

Now we find out, courtsey of our pals over at Adult Video News that a Cease & Desist letter has already hit the Boobs at Booble.

If you want any Booble swag,
better hurry before its all gone. I figure a t-shirt will sell for $100 on eBay the day the litigation is announced. (I'll take an XL, please)

via Booble swag boing boing

Posted at 06:20 PM in Humor, Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Here's an odd little site: Googobits.


Its essentially an organized collection of obituaries sourced via Google.

Odd . . . and yet, strangely compelling.

Posted at 07:31 AM in Current Affairs, Weblogs | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Look here: I don't do Friday cat blogging. With all due respect to Kevin Drum, this is simply not my gig.

I like cats; I love dogs (especially big hairy drooly affectionate ones ones). Consider this my one shot at FCB.

Posted at 06:03 AM in Humor | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

From the Korean firm Nextway, comes the "Digital Dream Device:"

"Mr D-Cube, I have someone from Apple's legal department on line 2 . . "

via Gizmodo

Posted at 06:56 AM in Design, Music, Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

From the deliciously nasty new blog Wonkette:

"Expect a "mock-free zone" around President Bush and "reasoned discourse" from Dennis Miller's new show tonight. But don't look for too many celebrities. Says Miller, "I don't care what Gary Coleman thinks about Afghanistan, which to me was the flaw of 'Politically Correct' [sic] towards the end."

He's sooooooo right. Because who cares what some washed-up comic actor with no political background thinks about poli- . . . er. . .huh.

No, we do not begrudge Miller his shot at fame. If Paris Hilton can become a household name by being filmed performing oral sex on an lackadaisical ex-jock, why shouldn't Dennis?"

The mouth-watering irony is that the king of ascerbic asides is now a jumbo partisan target for acid throwers of all stripes. So that's what they mean by blowhard . . .


Wonkette via Fimoculous


UPDATE: 1/28/04 11:30pm
Just came across this F.A.I.R. notice: "Conflict at CNBC's New Dennis Miller Show - Producer works for California governor"

Posted at 06:49 PM in Media, Politics, Weblogs | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

If you hate these goddamned trucks and the morons who drive them, this ad ad is for you.  

Over a LOUD guitar riff, a Hummer is seen driving across some wilderness. Its "virtues" are ticked off across the screen. (BTW, the music rocks -- who is this band?)  
 
Not safe for SUV owners . . .

via adrants

Posted at 05:18 PM in Current Affairs, Politics | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Fascinating piece of work from Harpers, circa 1872. (Any of this sound thoroughly modern?):

"Among the damaging documents and letters found in the private cabinet of the emperor after the flight of the imperial family from France, and published, with numerous others, in the favorite French form of the brochure (pamphlet), was a plan for the “organization of the press for the approaching elections.”

It is an elaborate paper, drawn up by one of the heads of the Ministry of the Interior, in the division of the Press, and explains with wonderful frankness the modus operandi of press management under the empire. It gives an exact idea of the manner and the system by which the Emperor Napoleon managed universal suffrage, and prepared public opinion through the medium of his subsidized presses in Paris and the provinces. The fact of the existence of such a system, and of a department under the Ministry of the Interior charged with the manipulation of the French press, had long been notorious; but the perfection of the machinery and its results were first brought to light by this unexpected revelation, which is curious as well as instructive.

In the plainest possible language, and with a startling display of facts and figures, the chief of the Press Bureau shows how, where, and when imperial “inspiration” is made to manufacture public opinion.

He commences by saying that in view of the approaching elections the thorough organization of the press became a pressing necessity. The time was short, the duty urgent, especially in the departments. There the government agents, with few exceptions, had made no preparations to secure the public suffrage either in the prefectures or in the ministerial bureaus, while the opposition, by an opposite play, was manifesting an extraordinary activity for its effective organization by the establishment of new opposition journals and the improvement of the old ones. There is, therefore, a vital necessity, says the minister, for the entire reorganization of the press of the departments.

With these preliminary remarks he submits the report of the chief of the Bureau of the Departments, or, as we should phrase it, the country press, explaining in detail the progress already made and the steps to be taken, which he sums up as follows: . . .

Source:
Press Management Under the Empire: a Leaf from the Private Papers of Napoleon III
How “imperial ‘inspiration’ was made to manufacture public opinion”
By Edwin De Leon
Originally from Harper's New Monthly Magazine, vol. 45, iss. 268, September, 1872.
http://www.hedtk.com/harpers.org/PressManagement.html

Posted on Monday, January 26, 2004

Posted at 05:09 PM in Current Affairs, Media, Politics | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

This is London sheds some light on the little bugger:

"With tiny teeth and claws, a little tail and soft-looking white skin, could this really be what it seems - a baby dragon?

Highly unlikely of course, but this disturbingly realistic model almost had the experts fooled.

The dragon, suspended in a jar of what is thought to be formaldehyde, is believed to be the brainchild of German scientists who wanted to humiliate their English counterparts in the 1890s, when the rivalry between the two countries was intense."

A simple X-ray will resolve whether this creature has a skeleton -- or if its a rubber model. At the time, Germany was the world's leading manufacturer of India rubber.

Of course, there are some people who refuse to believe that Dragons are extinct; This site has some interesting pictures, including what appears to be a Plesiosaur like creature ("Marine Dragon") supposedly fished out of the Pacific Ocean off the coast of New Zealand in 1977. Unfortuantely, it "stunk so bad that after they made 4, 5 pictures of him, they threw this Dinosaur back into the sea."

And just when we were so close to proving they exist! Damn!

Sources:
A baby dragon, or a bad joke?
By Roger Highfield, Science Editor
(Filed: 24/01/2004)
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/01/24/ndrag24.xml&sSheet=/news/2004/01/24/ixhome.html

Enter the dragon
By Humfrey Hunter
This is London, 23 January 2004
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/entertainment/art/articles/8795649?source=Even%0Aing%2520Standard

Dragons are NOT extinct
http://www.anzwers.org/free/livedragons/evolutio.htm

Posted at 08:56 AM in Humor, Media, Science | Permalink | Comments (33) | TrackBack

"A marijuana-based medication for people suffering from multiple sclerosis and severe pain is expected to be approved for sale in Britain early this year, British officials say.

The drug, Sativex, developed by GW Pharmaceuticals, a British company, is a liquid extract from marijuana grown by the company under license from the government. Developed to be sprayed under the tongue, it would be the first drug in recent decades to include all the components of the cannabis plant, advocates of medical marijuana say.

The British agency that regulates pharmaceuticals does not like to discuss potential drugs before they are approved. The country's Home Office, which oversees laws and policies on controlled substances, has indicated that Sativex is likely to receive approval."

Source:
Britain Poised to Approve Medicine Derived From Marijuana
By DAVID TULLER
Published: January 27, 2004
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/27/health/policy/27MARI.html

Posted at 04:10 PM in Current Affairs | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Delicate. Abstract. Phallic. Gorgeously designed. Four pages of "rare and valuable" Isaac Asimov book covers. Some are truly beautiful. From West Virginia University's brand-new home for an Asimov geek's recently donated collection. Rare and valuable artifacts that include autographed first editions.

via Metafilter

Posted at 11:58 PM in Art & Design, Books, SciFi | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Sigh. Always sad to see a classic car destroyed. There's a full set of these at carnut.dk.

That said, these look pretty cool . . .

Via linkfilter

Posted at 07:14 AM in Art & Design | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Why would anyone want a plush stuffed toy of Ebola, or Black Death or Streptococcus or the Flu?
"Cause they're cute!

Collect the whole set:

Bad Breath (Porphorymonas gingivalis)
Kissing Disease (Epstein-Barr)
Athlete's Foot (Trichophyton mentagrophytes)
Ulcer (Helicobater pylori)
Black Death (Yersinia Pestis)
Ebola (Ebola Virus)
The Flu (Orthomyxoviridus)
The Common Cold (Rhinovirus)
Stomach Ache (Shigella)
Sore Throat (Streptococcus)
Martian Life (ALH 84001)
Beer & Bread (Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Source:
Giant Microbes

Posted at 06:28 PM in Humor | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

You don't even have to get cold to experince the joy that is writing your name in the snow -- just head over to panlogic's pee index.



via Dave Barry

Posted at 06:27 PM in Humor | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Why do I find this so charming?

"I hope you like it -- I can't return it .. ."

Posted at 07:01 PM in Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

"Amazon.com is trying to take the friction out of grass-roots contributions to presidential candidates. We're making it as easy for people to contribute as it is to buy the latest Harry Potter. If you meet the necessary qualifications, contributing small amounts couldn't be easier . . ."

This is an interesting business approach to stealing a little of Dean's internet thunder by (arguably) the most successful internet retailer. What better way to democratize the collection of campaign contributions than thru one of the Web's most popular sites?

Heres some selected Q&A from the FAQ:

Are you guys affiliated with any candidate or party?
No.

Is Amazon.com endorsing a candidate?
No. You read the nonpartisan listings we provide and you decide which candidates to support, if any. We just make it easy.

Where does the candidate information come from?
We're reporting basic biographical information (birth date, home state, political party, etc.) about each candidate. In most cases, the information was provided by the campaign itself, or taken directly from the campaign's Web site. We have given each candidate a chance to edit or supplement this information.

Is Amazon.com getting paid to do this?
U.S. federal law prohibits us from donating services to any or all presidential campaigns, so we are charging the campaigns our usual and normal Amazon.com Payments fee.

We've also decided that we'll eventually contribute the aggregate amount we're paid in fees to Kids Voting USA, a nonprofit, nonpartisan, national organization that works with schools and communities to enhance civics education and provide youth an authentic voting experience.

How are you calculating the amount and number of contributions each candidate has received?
The numbers you see posted on the candidate's page reflect how many Amazon.com customers have made a contribution (of any size), and the collective value of the contributions that our customers have made to that candidate, via the Amazon.com "Presidential Candidates" feature, from the time the candidate first began accepting contributions through the feature.

How much may I contribute?
Although legal contribution limits are higher, we wanted to facilitate small contributions (between $5 and $200 to any candidate) through Amazon.com. By law, your total contributions to any candidate by any means must not exceed $2,000.

How does this feature work?
It uses the Amazon.com Payments capability that you also can use to buy products and services from other vendors.

What's the deadline for making contributions
As long as the Presidential Candidates feature is live on Amazon.com, you can make a contribution to the candidates that are participating. It's important to note that we're conducting this as a test and we may decide to discontinue it at any time.

May I give to two candidates?
Certainly; so long as you give no more than $200 to any one candidate, you may give to two, three, or more candidates, as you wish.

This race just keeps getting more and more interesting.

UPDATE: 1/24/04 10:00am Yahoo picks up the story via Reuters :

Source:
Amazon Presidential Candidates

Amazon.com's Latest Product Category: Politicians
By Reed Stevenson
Reuters, Jan 24, 9:00 AM ET
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=569&ncid=738&e=1&u=/nm/20040124/tc_nm/campaign_amazon_dc

Posted at 04:58 PM in Finance, Politics | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Following our previous thread of Star Wars, Trekkie and Snow cars, we now present: The 1959 Cadillac Miata!

via Beaterz

Posted at 07:09 AM in Design, Humor | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

A new "adult search engine" called "Booble," just popped up. The name and logo should look somewhat familiar to you; So should the "I'm feeling playful" button.

It's essentially parallel in look and feel to Google. Just substitute the letter "b" for "g" and there's your logo. The site owners should expect a letter from Google's legal counsel any day.

If I represented the search engine giant, instead of sending the standard boring trademark infringment letter, I would have some fun with the case. How often do you get to sue a porn related site? I imagine the money shot would look something like this:

"Greetings,

We represent Google Corporation ("Google") in trademark matters. Google owns numerous U.S. and foreign federal trademark and copyright registrations for the famous Google logo design. Your site makes unauthorized use of our client's widely recognized name and trademarks.

Your site is an adult search engine. As such, we assume you are familiar with the plot line of the film "Back Door Bandits." Congratulations! You've just won the lead role in "Back Door Bandits 2." Enclosed please find a complimentary matching velcro glove and sock set for your role in the film . . .

Who said litigation wasn't any fun?

via linkfilter

Posted at 07:25 AM in Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Following today's theme of absurdly modified cars, comes this twist on the snow mobile: The Snow Car!

Yes, the car is made completely out of snow.

The entire contruction process can be seen here .

via Linkfilter

Posted at 11:17 AM in Art & Design, Humor | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Not to be outdone by mere Trekkies, the Star Wars fans prove that their parents basements are just as comfortable:

You simply must see the entire collection of photos of this car here; (Love that dashboard!)

Via Dave Barry

Posted at 06:44 AM in Film, Humor | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

This, believe it or not, was once a VW bus.

Put the remote control down, and back away fom the television set -- s l o w l y . . .

To paraphrase Shatner, "Move out of your parents basement!"

Source:
Beaterz.com

Posted at 01:09 AM in Design, Humor, SciFi | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Sources:
Kerry Wins Iowa With Late Surge
By John Harwood, Jacob M. Schlesinger and Shailagh Murray
Wall Street Journal, 1/20/04
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB107453417255405308,00.html

Posted at 03:39 PM in Politics | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

We were out with friends the other nite -- she's a bigwig in the IT department for a major media player, and he's a well respected attorney with ties to a major political party in Nassau County.

We drive by the Home Depot Expo in Westbury, and he points to the sign outside the Chock Full of Nuts coffee bar at the Expo: The "h" is not working; We all have a good juvenile laugh at the signage and its surreal/quasi dirty message. Ha ha ha.

A few days later, he sends me an email with the following jpeg attached:

That's right, "Cock full of Nuts."

What does this mean? Deep down inside, we are all 11 year olds . . .

Posted at 06:06 AM in Humor | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

What Classic Movie Are You?

via linkfilter

Posted at 08:10 AM in Film | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Why don't we have more car commercials like this one in the United States?

car commercial
(right click to download, left click to play)

Sources:
La Croqueta
Fiat Panda

Posted at 09:45 AM in Media | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

601am introduces the NYTimes Rage-O-Meter based on hatred of the paper. Rankings range from "Mushy NYT Love" to "Moves and Becomes NJ Times."

via adrants

Posted at 09:27 AM in Media | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

"The bomber, Reem al-Reyashi, 22, said in video released after her attack that "it was always my wish to turn my body into deadly shrapnel against the Zionists and to knock on the doors of heaven with the skulls of Zionists."

Ms. Reyashi left behind a son aged 3, and a year-old daughter.

"Sheik Ahmed Yassin, the spiritual leader of Hamas, said this was the first time his group had dispatched a woman to be a suicide bomber. Some militant Palestinian factions have been reluctant to do so, and some Islamic groups have questioned whether it is permitted under Islamic law..."

Let us take a moment now to consider the joyous wisdom of this sect, whose pious philosophy contemplates whether it is morally allowable for a woman to strap explosives to her body, layered over with strychnine coated nails, who feigns injury to attract assistance, and then blows herself up, in order to kill and maim innocent woman and children, as well as military personnel.

Truly, the soaring majesty of such a belief system, ruminating on such weighty universal queries, reveals all that is wondrous and holy in the spiritual realm. Gandhi would be proud.

This clarifies for me the question as to why this once great region -- where mathematics was invented, where magnificent libraries rose, where all sorts of other wonders of human genius was birthed -- hasn't accomplished a goddamned thing in 1200 years.

Source
Gaza Mother, 22, Kills Four Israelis in Suicide Bombing
By GREG MYRE
NYTimes, January 15, 2004
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/15/international/middleeast/15MIDE.html

Posted at 08:55 AM in Current Affairs, Media, War/Defense | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Moveon.org Superbowl Commercial not seen on network

I gotcha your liberal media right HERE:

WASHINGTON (AdAge.com) -- Viacom's CBS today rejected a request from liberal group MoveOn to air a 30-second anti-President Bush ad during the Super Bowl, saying the spot violated the network's policy against running issue advocacy advertising.

Network policy: A CBS spokesman said the decision against broadcasting the spot had nothing to do with either the Super Bowl or the ad's specific issue but was because the network has had a long-term policy not to air issue ads anywhere on the network.

A MoveOn spokesperson said the group hopes to appeal the decision within CBS.
Produced as a personal project by Charlie Fisher, creative director of the Copenhagen, Denmark, office of Publicis Groupe ad agency Leo Burnett, the spot is critical of the Bush administration's fiscal policies.

Anti-Bush contest: MoveOn is airing a 60-second version the commercial, which was selected through a contest calling for anti-Bush ads, in advance of President Bush's State of the Union address Jan. 20. The group has purchased $300,000 worth of air time on Time Warner's CNN that starts Jan. 17 and runs through Jan. 21.

CBS is owned by Viacom, a company worth 5.4 billion dollars. ABC is owned by Disney, whose worth is $49.1 Billion dollars. CNN is part of the AOL Time Warner family, worth 76.7 Billion dollars. Lastly, NBC's parent is GE, the largest company in America, with a market cap of $337.67B dollars.

Its simply a matter of dollars and sense -- these companies have an agenda to maximize value for their shareholders; In fact, that is their legal obligation.

The so called liberal media -- worth about half a trillion dollars net . . . What do you think their priorities are?

via adrants

SUPERBOWL SUNDAY UPDATE: 2/1/04 8:12pm
If you are looking for the Moveon.org Superbowl ad rejected by CBS ad, click here

Source:
CBS REJECTS ANTI-BUSH SUPER BOWL COMMERCIAL
Cites Network Policy Barring Issue Ads
January 15, 2004
QwikFIND ID: AAP29U
By Ira Teinowitz
http://www.adage.com/news.cms?newsId=39590

Posted at 08:22 AM in Current Affairs, Media, Politics | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBack

Along with "epiphany", one of my favorite, "created" words:

serendipity \ser-uhn-DIP-uh-tee\, noun:
The faculty or phenomenon of making fortunate accidental discoveries.

The word serendipity was formed by English author Horace Walpole (1717-1797) from Serendip (also Serendib), an old name for Sri Lanka, in reference to a Persian tale, The Three Princes of Serendip, whose heroes "discovered, quite unexpectedly, great and wonderful good in the most unlikely of situations, places and people."

Source:
Dictionary.com
http://dictionary.reference.com/search?r=9&q=serendipity

Posted at 07:05 PM in Books | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

This is such an aesthetically well designed, sensual instrument cluster and dashboard; You have to give the engineers at Lexus credit for just knocking the cover off the ball.

Posted at 08:15 PM in Design | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Wow! 100,000 hits between "The Big Picture" and "essays & effluvia" since July 2003. That's just awesome. . . . thanks for coming by.

Posted at 11:53 PM in Weblogs | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Get Rolling Stone free for one full year (requires name, address, email & phone number).

Posted at 10:42 PM in Media, Music | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Mrs. essays&effluvia always gives me grief at birthday parties: I wont sing the idiotic happy birthday song. I'm sorry, but I simply hate it -- its a terrible melody, no one can carry the tune, its 90 seconds of pain everytime I hear it. I cannot believe anyone gets paid royalties for this annoying shit. To make matters worse, the Mrs.' entire family is tone deaf. The cacophony at family gatherings is truly disturbing.

So you can imagine our hysterics watching Curb Your Enthusiasm tonite: Larry won't sing happy birthday to Ben Stiller at his party (2 weeks after the actual date). I found it amusing, but my wife was hysterical: "Ohmigod! I married Larry David!

She should be so lucky . . .

Posted at 11:22 PM in Media | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

"You don't have a DVD player? YOU?"

I've heard that countless times over the past few years, and its true -- this gadget lover geek boy had no DVD player--until today.

Bought one I was familiar with on an impulse for under $100. Progressive scan, CD-R, MP3 Data, S video out. Pretty much all I wanted.

Fnny thing is, I really don't need one. I'm more of a recorder than a player -- witness the devastingly effective pairing of Dish Satellite with Tivo PVR.

Still, its out there. On the occasional Blockbuster run, I notice the selection differences between the fading VHS and the newer DVD. The kicker has been getting DVDs as gifts -- notably, the 4 DVD set of Oscar winners my sister gave me for the holidays this year.

What finally put me over has been the huge selection of musical concerts, special shows, studio recordings on DVD.

When I come across something notable, I'll be sure to make note of it here!

Posted at 07:28 PM in Film, Music, Shopping | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Today's musical virus comes from the charming Kirsty Maccoll, who died tragically in December 2000, in a diving/boating accident in Mexico.

In addition to playing with a broad cross section of talent -- The Pogues, Billy Bragg, The Talking Heads, Simple Minds, The Smiths, and Robert Plant -- her work is an eclectic mix of styles, ranging from Pop to Cuban, Punk to Bossa Nova.


Listen to the April 2000 release, from Tropical Brainstorm:     In These Shoes.

Kirsty Maccoll Resources:
Auralgasms
http://www.auralgasms.com/?BandID=kirsty

Rolling Stone
http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/bio.asp?oid=3059&cf=3059

There is an interesting write up of her life at (don't ask me why) the World Socialist Web Site
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2001/jan2001/kirs-j11_prn.shtml

Kirsty at Amazon

Posted at 01:02 PM in Music | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

This simply looks cool:

Source: Acer USA

Here's the PR blurb:

"Innovation and technology have always played a primary role in the world of Formula One racing, as well as the PC industry, and the Ferrari 3000 symbolizes these two distinct characteristics in one platform," said Jeffrey Friederichs, vice president, Notebook Business Unit, Acer America. "We are thrilled to team with Ferrari to produce a notebook PC that will stand out in the crowd no matter the environment. Consumers, whether they are Ferrari, racing or PC enthusiasts, will be excited when they see it."

Here are the specs:

	Ferrari 3000LMi
Processor	Mobile AMD Athlon™ XP-M 2500+
Operating System	Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition
Memory	512MB
Hard drive	60GB1
Optical drive	DVD-Dual (DVD+/-RW)
TFT Display	15.0" SXGA+
Graphics	128MB DDR ATI® MOBILITY™ RADEON™ 9200
Connectivity	802.11g WLAN, Bluetooth™, 10/100 LAN, V.92 modem

Source:
Acer
Newstream

Posted at 10:43 AM in Design | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBack

The plot thickens! In a huge coup, Apple will be now manufacturing iPod clones for HP! From tomorrow's NYT tonite:

"SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 8 Hewlett-Packard said today that it would begin selling a version of Apple Computer's iPod digital music player and bundling its iTunes jukebox software, in a strategic alliance that hints at the potential for significant shifts within the computer industry.

As part of the agreement, the terms of which were finished only after a late-night bargaining session on Wednesday, Apple will manufacture its popular iPod player in a HP corporate blue hue, and Hewlett, the world's second-largest computer maker, will place an icon on the desktop of its consumer PC's, directing its customers to Apple's software and music store.

The deal is a coup for Steven P. Jobs, Apple's chief executive, who has gained tremendous leverage and clout in the past year because of his success in the burgeoning digital music business that far outstrips Apple's relatively tiny share in the overall personal computer business.

For Hewlett-Packard, the alliance potentially gives it instant brand and technology identification, newfound independence from Microsoft and a significant advantage over Dell, which does not have a strong presence at electronic retail stores for distributing its own music players. The alliance also underscores the fast-paced deal-making now going on in the market for digital entertainment products, as computer makers and content providers jostle for position in new and growing markets."

Here are the various digital music services (via the WSJ):

Sources:
Hewlett Teams Up With Apple to Sell iPod
By JOHN MARKOFF,
January 8, 2004, NYT
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/08/technology/08CND-MUSI.html

H-P Will Resell Apple's iPod Player
By DON CLARK and NICK WINGFIELD
January 8, 2004, WSJ
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB107360548035118800,00.html

Posted at 11:01 PM in Music, Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Interesting article from Nicholas Thompson: Notes From the Underground: What the ailing record industry can learn from a successful subway musician.

Here's Nick's 3 main suggestions:

1) Drop the price of CDs:
You've certainly heard me mention this here or here or here or even here.

2) Branch out:
The film model, which the music industry is so addicted to, no longer works for them. They must ween themselves from a few manufactured megastars, and embrace a model of a broad and diverse roster of artists. Then there's music distribution based upon colloborative filtering; Look into it.

3) Embrace file-sharing:
Duh, its advertising. Get it?

Good advice.

Posted at 05:25 PM in Current Affairs, Media, Music | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Here's the next thing to give Hollywood fits: The Archos Video AV320. The AV320 is an iPod for video; It stores movies taken from DVDs on its hard drive. As its name suggests, it hold 320 hours of video -- 160 two hour films -- on its hard drive.

Hollywood's newest nightmare: The Archos Video AV320

Here's what the WSJ had to say about it:

"Archos's device, which costs about $500 to $900 depending on the model, ignores an anticopying code found on a majority of prerecorded DVDs. That means consumers can plug the Archos device into a DVD player and transfer a movie to it. Users also can transfer recorded TV programs and digital music files to the gadget. Using a video compression standard called MPEG-4, the Archos device is able to cram as many as 320 hours of video at near-DVD quality onto its hard drive, the company says -- the equivalent of 160 two-hour movies.

A second kind of anticopying protection thwarts users from recording a playable copy of a DVD movie onto the hard-drive of a personal computer and then onto the Archos. But videos can be transferred from the Archos to a PC, where they could be burned onto a DVD or sent over the Internet, though that would likely violate copyright laws."

It actually costs less than the Journal's quoted price: Amazon sells the Archos AV320 Video / MP3 Jukebox Recorder for $469.84

Oh yeah, baby. Daddy wants one now!

Source:
Hand-Held Device For DVD Movies Raises Legal Issues
KEVIN J. DELANEY
WSJ, January 7, 2004
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB107343191287572300,00.html

Archos, Inc.
http://www.archos.com

Archos Video AV320 at Amazon.com

Posted at 03:08 PM in Film, Media, Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Mark Morford may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I find him to be a terrifically intriguing writer of great beauty and originality. Here's