Halloween Night Banner - SnarkySpot

Ha ha ha hoooo!!! Happy Halloween babies!!!

SnarkySpot

Happy Halloween: http://cgi.fark.com/cgi/fark/users.pl?login=Detry FARK.com: User profiles

FARK.com: User profiles

Political Google Bombing

AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl AZ-01: Rick Renzi AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth CA-04: John Doolittle CA-11: Richard Pombo CA-50: Brian Bilbray CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave CO-05: Doug Lamborn CO-07: Rick O'Donnell CT-04: Christopher Shays FL-13: Vernon Buchanan FL-16: Joe Negron FL-22: Clay Shaw ID-01: Bill Sali IL-06: Peter Roskam IL-10: Mark Kirk IL-14: Dennis Hastert IN-02: Chris Chocola

IN-08: John Hostettler IA-01: Mike Whalen KS-02: Jim Ryun KY-03: Anne Northup KY-04: Geoff Davis MD-Sen: Michael Steele MN-01: Gil Gutknecht MN-06: Michele Bachmann MO-Sen: Jim Talent MT-Sen: Conrad Burns NV-03: Jon Porter NH-02: Charlie Bass NJ-07: Mike Ferguson NM-01: Heather Wilson NY-03: Peter King NY-20: John Sweeney NY-26: Tom Reynolds

NY-29: Randy Kuhl NC-08: Robin Hayes NC-11: Charles Taylor OH-01: Steve Chabot OH-02: Jean Schmidt OH-15: Deborah Pryce OH-18: Joy Padgett PA-04: Melissa Hart PA-07: Curt Weldon PA-08: Mike Fitzpatrick PA-10: Don Sherwood RI-Sen: Lincoln Chafee TN-Sen: Bob Corker VA-Sen: George Allen VA-10: Frank Wolf WA-Sen: Mike McGavick WA-08: Dave Reichert

The J-Walk Blog: Political Google Bombing

Michael J. Fox Foundation - The war against Parkinson's Disease is winnable

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research is dedicated to ensuring the development of a cure for Parkinson's disease within this decade through an aggressively funded research agenda.
More than $80 million funded since November 2000 directly or through partnerships.

Michael J. Fox Foundation

Water Balloon to Head - super slow motion video

"Water Balloon to Head. Looks pretty cool in slow motion."

Water Balloon to Head

Dungeons & Dragons player tried for murder after killing co-worker with homemade sword on CourtTV.com

"DETROIT — On Oct. 27, 2004, James Flemons walked into work with a homemade samurai sword and slashed his co-worker to death.

Prosecutors say Flemons, then 30, was angry because of constant bullying by the victim, Anthony Williams, and other co-workers at Peerless Metal Powders & Abrasive.

But Flemons' lawyer says he is schizophrenic with a psychotic obsession with fantasy role-playing games, including Dungeons & Dragons.

Opening statements in Flemons' murder trial are expected Wednesday.

Williams arrived at his job the day of the killing armed with a homemade 38-inch samurai sword. Witnesses told police that Flemons appeared to hand Williams a piece of metal in a chivalrous manner, as if challenging him to a duel, before chasing him and stabbing him to death." (more)

Dungeons & Dragons player tried for murder after killing co-worker with homemade sword on CourtTV.com

YouTube - Travelling Mind - Grape Digging Sharon Fruits

Has a great Monty Python/Terry Gilliam feel to the video.

www.myspace.com/grapediggers

Provided By: http://www.fat-pie.com : Home to Salad Fingers, Burnt Face M

Not a Mouth Band this time, but a real o Not a Mouth Band this time, but a real one. Animated ridiculousness with our band the Grape Digging Sharon Fruits as we all become 2d for a couple of minutes and generally charge about, pulling each others' heads open and diving in toilets. Animated by David Firth with ideas and suggestions from the whole band. If you like the song then it, and others can be found on our myspace page myspace.com/grapediggers.... (more)

YouTube - Travelling Mind

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation Melk Mugs™ starting at $14.95

Those look awesome!

Melk Mugs™

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation Style Moose - Elk Eggnog Mugs

Due to extreme demand, it is very likely there will not be enough to go around. Pre-order now for delivery in November. Don't miss out!

Melk Mugs™ starting at $14.95

do512 | It's Party Time

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is Do512.com?
2. How are events ranked? What does "Recommended" Mean?
3. Where do your events and specials come from?
4. Can I show my friends and enemies my recommendations?
5. Can I see events by area of town or type of event?
6. Can I see all events for a Band or Venue?
7. Where do the photos come from?
8. Why is the site kinda ugly?
9. Why doesn't the site do [fill in the blank]?
10. Why did you only have 9 questions?

do512 | It's Party Time

Wired News: Masi Oka: Coder, Actor, Hero

"Millions of viewers of NBC's Heroes know actor Masi Oka as Hiro Nakamura, the bored young Japanese office worker who discovers he has the power to alter time and teleport. What they probably don't know is that he's been working behind the scenes for years as one of Industrial Light & Magic's top programmers.

In an ensemble cast that features solid acting all around, Oka steals the show every time he's on the screen. The show literally has his Hiro living out the exploits of his own comic book, 9th Wonders.

Since graduating from Brown University in 1997, Oka has worked on more than 30 big-budget Hollywood films at ILM. During that time he has written more than 20 programs and 100 plug-ins for the leading special-effects house. While audiences might not have known his name or face until Heroes, they've seen his programming magic on the big screen in films like The Perfect Storm, Star Wars: Episode II, Terminator 3 and the first two Pirates of the Caribbean movies.

"I've been programming computers since elementary school, where they taught us, and I stuck with computer science through high school and college," said Oka. "ILM offered me an entry-level position at its Marin, California, headquarters, but they refused to fly me out for the job interview. Fortunately, Microsoft also was interested in hiring me and they flew me out to Seattle, then down to San Francisco and back to Providence."" (more)

Wired News: Masi Oka: Coder, Actor, Hero

DevilDucky - Natural Hallucinogen

That's a head trip for sure. I love optical illusions.

"Experience real hallucination, no drugs necessary."

DevilDucky - Natural Hallucinogen

(via Sensen No Sen)

Restaurants.com - global restaurant guide - coupon code for 60% off your total order...?

I don't see anywere on the site to enter the coupon code...

If you don't know about Restaurants.com, it's a website where you can
buy $25 gift certificates for certain restaurants all over the country
for $10 and I just got a coupon code for 60% off your total order,
making a $25 gc only $4!! Go to the website, pick your certificates and
when you check out enter: 44355 in the coupon code window!

Restaurants.com - global restaurant guide

SnarkySpot - Archive from a year ago

http://snarkyspot.blogspot.com/2005_10_01_snarkyspot_archive.html

SnarkySpot

Porn star exits race to be with injured mom | Oddly Enough | Reuters.com

Wow, she's got some teeth on her.

TEETH, I said.... teeth.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Porn star Mary Carey said on Monday she was dropping out of the California governor's race to be with her injured mother, who has been hospitalized in Florida since jumping off a four-story building last month.

Carey, who shot to worldwide fame with her quixotic gubernatorial campaign against Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2003, said her mother was in critical condition at a Ft. Lauderdale hospital and facing surgery.

"She's schizophrenic and didn't take her medication and jumped off a building," Carey said. "She broke both of her legs, shattered her feet and shattered four vertebrae in back. It's remarkable she survived."

The star of such adult film titles as "Boobsville Sorority Girls" and "Cheerleader School" was running as a write-in candidate in 2006 because she could not collect enough signatures to be on the November ballot. (more)

Porn star exits race to be with injured mom | Oddly Enough | Reuters.com

North Korean soldier throws rock at photographers - BBC NEWS | In Pictures | Day in pictures

Nice. Where is the Yalu River? Dandong?

"A North Korean soldier picks up a stone to throw at photographers taking pictures across the Yalu River from the Chinese border city of Dandong."

BBC NEWS | In Pictures | Day in pictures

BBC NEWS | South Asia | Pro-Taleban militants in tax move

Pictures at link.

Pro-Taleban militants in tax move

Pro-Taleban militants in Pakistan's troubled North Waziristan tribal region have announced plans to raise their own taxes, reports say.

The plans were announced in pamphlets issued in the district's capital town, Miranshah, on Sunday.

In September the central government signed a controversial peace deal with the local militants.

Afghan and Nato troops say the area has been used by the Taleban to mount cross-border attacks.

Pakistan says the peace deal requires the local tribesmen to stop sheltering Taleban and al-Qaeda fugitives and prevent them from crossing the border into Afghanistan.

As a quid pro quo, the regular army troops were withdrawn to their camps, leaving the tribesmen, led by local pro-Taleban militants, in control of law and order.

An earlier bid by the local militants to start taking over the running of law and order in Miranshah was abandoned on the request of Pakistani officials.

'After Eid'

On Sunday, a council of the local Taleban, which claims to speak on behalf of the tribal elders, announced the levy of taxes on various categories of trucks and businesses.

Eyewitnesses told the BBC news website that actual collection of the taxes would start after Eid al-Fitr, the three-day festival marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

The pamphlets also gave details of punishments to be handed out. It said anyone guilty of murder would themselves be killed.

People found guilty of crimes such as theft would face fines of 500,000 rupees ($8,250) and two months in prison.

'Closely watch'

In neighbouring region of South Waziristan, also bordering Afghanistan, there were two agreements between the army and local pro-Taleban militants, in April 2004 and February 2005.

Since then, various local Taleban groups in South Waziristan have taken over the administration of justice, including imposing fines. They also collect taxes and recruiting fighters.

Western officials and some Nato commanders in Afghanistan have said they would closely watch developments in North Waziristan following September's peace deal between the tribes and the government.

Some observers fear that the situation in North Waziristan may follow the same pattern as in South Waziristan, with local Taleban setting up sanctuaries for Afghan insurgents.

But the Pakistani government says that the peace deal is an effective tool to separate militants from the non-militant tribesmen and isolate foreign militants in the region.

They say the deal opened the way for a similar deal between the local tribesmen of Musa Qala district in Afghanistan's Helmand province and the British troops last week.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/south_asia/6078380.stm

Published: 2006/10/23 16:45:36 GMT

© BBC MMVI

BBC NEWS | South Asia | Pro-Taleban militants in tax move

The Earth and Moon are orbiting each other - How Things Work - How Things Work Home Page

1526. Your answer to question #1393 is fine for the hypothetical case of the earth orbiting around the moon, but I don't see how it works for the real case where the moon orbits the earth. What is the real reason for the tides? — DM

There is nothing hypothetical about the earth orbiting the moon; it's as real as the moon orbiting the earth. The earth and the moon are simply two huge balls in otherwise empty space and though the mass of one is 81 times the mass of the other, they're both in motion. More specifically, they're in orbit around their combined center of mass — the effective location of the earth-moon system.

Since the earth is so much more massive than the moon, their combined center of mass is 81 times closer to the middle of the earth than it is to the middle of the moon. In fact, it's inside the earth, though not at the middle of the earth. As a result, the earth's orbital motion takes the form of a wobble rather than a more obvious looping path. Nonetheless, the earth is orbiting.

I hope that you can see that there is no reason why the earth should be fixed in space while the moon orbits about it. You've been sold a bill of goods. The mistaken notion that the moon orbits a fixed earth is a wonderful example of the "factoid science" that often passes for real science in our society.

Because thinking and understanding involve hard work, people are more comfortable when the thought and understanding have been distilled out of scientific issues and they've been turned into memorizable sound bites. Those sound bites are easy to teach and easy to test, but they're mostly mental junk food. A good teacher, like a good scientist, will urge you to question such factoids until you understand the science behind them and why they might or might not be true.

When my children were young, I often visited their schools to help teach science. In third grade, the required curriculum had them categorizing things into solutions or mixtures. Naturally, I showed them a variety of things that are neither solutions nor mixtures. It was a blast. Science is so much more interesting than a collection of 15-second sound bites.

How Things Work - How Things Work Home Page

eBay: congressman mark foley action figure Spectrestudios (item 230039721735 end time Oct-23-06 19:27:57 PDT)

Don't miss the 'Question & Answer' section at the bottom of the eBay page (ha, I said 'bottom of the eBay page...)

Congressman Mark Foley Action Figure WITN #3

Six inches tall. This is a sculptural Mockup in polymer clay it is not articulated. ONE OF A KIND this is the only one.

Artist David Johnson of SpectreStudios

eBay: congressman mark foley action figure Spectrestudios (item 230039721735 end time Oct-23-06 19:27:57 PDT)

(via Sensen No Sen)

Friday web zen: candy zen

i want candy
maoam
gum wrapper chain
licorice piglets
sticky
candy+soda=???
coffee chocolate
the candy blog
bad candy
trick or treat

web zen

Hell - Wikiality

"Hell is the location non-Christians and anti-Americans go when they physically and/or spiritually die.

The location and description of Hell has been outlined by reliable Christian prophets. The climate of Hell has been described as pungent with the odor of pride and arrogance, while the landscape is characterized as scorched and blasted, the ground as sour. Hell is populated by lost souls who wail and gnash their teeth, damned with the knowledge that the circumstances of their situation have been dictated by the emptiness within their withered souls. It should also be noted that Hell is overrun by Gay Bears. Basically the place is like something out of a psychopath's fever dream.

Due to these descriptions, most leading theologians believe Hell is France on Earth, though another contendor is the East Coast and/or West Coast."

Hell - Wikiality

The Pumpkin Lady - Pumpkin Carving and Free Pumpkin Patterns Patterns

The Pumpkin Lady - Pumpkin Carving and Free Pumpkin Patterns Patterns

Microsoft releases Internet Explorer 7 - Google News

Microsoft releases Internet Explorer 7
TG Daily - 1 hour ago
Redmond (WA) - Fresh off of the heels of the release of Firefox' latest preview version of its next-generation browser, Microsoft launched a new version of its ...

Microsoft Releases Internet Explorer 7 (IE7) ABC News - 2 hours ago Those running Windows XP Service Pack 2, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, and Windows Server 2003 will be able to download the Web browser or will soon ...

Internet Explorer 7 Release Party Computerworld, MA - 2 hours ago By Martin McKeay on Thu, 10/19/2006 - 9:30am. Internet Explorer 7 was released last night and I had the opportunity to go to the ...

Microsoft's browser gets upgraded BBC News, UK - 2 hours ago The new version is the first upgrade to the web browsing program for more than five years. New features include tabbed browsing, the ...

Internet Explorer 7 Released Techtree.com, India - 3 hours ago Microsoft Corp has released Internet Explorer 7 (IE 7) for Windows XP, which comes with significant security enhancements, making everyday tasks easier. ...

First security flaw signaled in IE7 Computerworld, MA - 3 hours ago October 19, 2006 (IDG News Service) -- Less than 24 hours after the launch of Internet Explorer 7, security researchers are poking holes in the new browser. ...

Internet Explorer 7 final released Ars Technica, MA - 3 hours ago It has been a long and sometimes lonely road for Internet Explorer fans waiting for an upgrade to their favorite browser. Even some ...

Microsoft to Promote Answers.com's 1-Click Answers(TM) as ' ... Yahoo! News (press release) - 4 hours ago NEW YORK, October 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Answers Corporation (NASDAQ: ANSW - News), creators of Answers.com(TM) which supplies relevant answers on almost ...

IE7 unleashed Register, UK - 6 hours ago By John Leyden → More by this author. Microsoft's much-anticipated IE7 browser is finally available for download, 18 months after ...

Microsoft's Internet Explorer 7 ready for download Pocket-lint.co.uk, UK - 6 hours ago by Amber Maitland. 19 October 2006 - After a lapse of five years without an update, Microsoft has finally released the latest version ...

Internet Explorer 7 Final Released BetaNews - 8 hours ago By Nate Mook, BetaNews. Microsoft late Wednesday released the much-anticipated final version of Internet Explorer 7, the first major ...

Microsoft releases final version of IE7 for download iTWire, Australia - 8 hours ago By Stan Beer. Microsoft has released its long awaited catchup browser Internet Explorer 7 for public download and intends to push ...

IE 7 ready for download
Silicon.com, UK - 9 hours ago
By Ina Fried. Some 18 months after Bill Gates pledged to revamp Internet Explorer, Microsoft is ready with the final version of Internet ...

- Google News

Wacky sentence generator - 3CH for Web

Here are a smattering of some sentences I generated:

1. A violent scientist cuts a man on a branch.
2. A minimalist surgeon cuts a cowboy in a cellar.
3. A gigantic cow câline a barbarian in a temple.
4. A gigantic alien communicates with a priest in a cellar.
5. A minimalist musketeer destroys a scarecrow in an unchained sea.
6. A malefic princess dematerializes a very fat guy in a devastée street.
7. A melancholic men lizards breathes on an eye under a storm.
8. A scintillating cerbère reveals a snowboarder in a street of tokyo.
9. A supersonic fairy strikes down a fakir in a drill covered with snow.
10. A solidified monolith raises a musketeer in the night.

3CH for Web

Stingray leaps into boat, stabs man in chest - CNN.com

After the Steve Irwin incident, word has spread: Humans are easy pickings.

"MIAMI, Florida (Reuters) -- A leaping stingray stabbed an 81-year-old Florida boater in the chest, authorities said Wednesday, leaving its poisonous stinger lodged close to his heart in an incident recalling the one that killed Australian TV naturalist Steve Irwin last month.

Fire Department officials in Lighthouse Point, about 30 miles north of Miami, said James Bertakis was in a small recreational boat with two grandchildren Tuesday when the spotted eagle ray leaped aboard and struck him." Stingray leaps into boat, stabs man in chest - CNN.com

US adopts tough new space policy... Death Star FTW!!!

"The United States will preserve its rights, capabilities, and freedom of action in space... and deny, if necessary, adversaries the use of space capabilities hostile to US national interests"

US National Space Policy in full (44K)

BBC NEWS | Americas | US adopts tough new space policy

Grand Illusions - Homepage

"Welcome to Grand Illusions...

...the site for the enquiring mind. There are new and amazing toys in the Toy Collection, all with video clips to show them in action, and a unique collection of toys you can buy in the Toy Shop." Grand Illusions - Homepage

Slashdot | Robot Swarm Shifts Heavy Objects

"A swarm of robots has been demonstrated that can get together to transport an object too heavy for a single bot. Each robot is loaded with the same simple set of behaviors but more complex intelligence emerges from a group interacting. Two videos show the robots in action, and using a more complex behavior necessary when they're set to short sighted mode and can't see the target location from the starting point."

Slashdot | Robot Swarm Shifts Heavy Objects

Thai PM 'to reach out to Muslims', denies claims of pinching, prodding soon after

"Thailand's new Premier Surayud Chulanont has said he will use peaceful means to try to resolve the Islamic insurgency in the country's south.

Speaking after a meeting in Malaysia, Gen Surayud said he wanted to reach out to Muslims in the troubled region.

His comments signal a different approach to the hardline stance taken by his predecessor Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a coup last month.

The southern violence has claimed more than 1,500 lives since January 2004." (more) BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Thai PM 'to reach out to Muslims'

xkcd - A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language - By Randall Munroe

"When did we forget our dreams?"

(answer at link)

xkcd - A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language - By Randall Munroe

p.s. - This comic at xkcd gets extra points for dinosaur goodness.

xkcd - A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language - By Randall Munroe

"When did we forget our dreams?"

(answer at link)

xkcd - A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language - By Randall Munroe

Online Pumpkin Carving - Halloween - GameGarage.co.uk

INSTRUCTIONS: Use the different knives to carve your pumpkins, then click ok. Choose the background, then write a message and send it to your friends.

Halloween - GameGarage.co.uk

Things You Never Knew Existed : Scary Things & Halloween

Things You Never Knew Existed : Scary Things & Halloween

CrackSpace - The Place for Hip-Hop > Home

Word. I thought it was a joke at first... apparently not.

Urban MySpace/YouTube Hybrid, Crackspace.com, Set to Launch Nov. 1 with Unreleased Content from Ludacris, Diddy, T.I., Lloyd Banks and More

New, urban website describes as a MySpace/YouTube/download store for the urban audience) officially launches Nov. 1 as the first web community/video sharing/download store hybrid of its kind. Upon its launch, will feature world premieres of previously unreleased songs, remixes and videos from artists such as Ludacris, T.I., Diddy, Akon, Ghostface, Lloyd Banks, Hi-Tek, Jim Jones and Foxy Brown, available for promotional streaming. Additional site features include news, gossip, a YouTube-like video uploading and sharing component, a download store and a MySpace-inspired web community where users can upload and sell their own songs, videos, ringtones and wallpaper.

Chuck Wilson, founder of one of the nation's most successful independent urban labels (Babygrande Records), created through his newly formed Triumph Media Holdings, because he saw a need for a social networking & music/video site that catered to the urban community "The market need for a technologically advanced urban website could not be more urgent," Wilson says. "MySpace is great but it doesn't even come close to fully satisfying the hip-hop generation. was created by and for that generation. This is a place for anyone who loves the culture. We have to be very much in touch with the places where kids experience urban music and culture and really set the table for when the majority of sales are online. That's really what this is all about."

CrackSpace has formed a strategic partnership with Musicane, the company that will provide users with a unique player enabling all of the site's transactions. Another CrackSpace strategic partner is hh411.com (a popular hip-hop information site) which attracts nearly 400,000 unique visitors a day. TAG Strategic, a company started by digital media whiz, and former EMI Music Group Senior VP of Digital Development & Distribution, Ted Cohen, has been enlisted to consult after launch.

CrackSpace - The Place for Hip-Hop > Home

Second Life | Online world to get news bureau |BBC NEWS | Technology

"The bureau will be staffed by Reuters media correspondent Adam Pasick who will report on the lives and business dealings of Second Life's residents.

An avatar resembling Mr Pasick, called Adam Reuters in the game, has been created to act as a virtual reporter in the world for the news agency.

Second Life has almost one million members and 400,000 of those are regular visitors to the online world." (more) BBC NEWS | Technology | Online world to get news bureau

white ninja comics - Project

"What is White Ninja Comics?

White Ninja Comics are not for the weak of mind. They are a brilliant satirical commentary on controversial worldly issues.

They can be enjoyed on many levels. Scholars, Philosophers, and the like, who possess the intellect to analyze and break down the comics to their hidden, and often devious, roots, will enjoy White Ninja to its fullest degree. Others, like you and I, however, can still enjoy the comics for their light-hearted surface humour and funny drawings." white ninja comics

Welcome to the official online archive of Computer Gaming World magazine - FileFront

Welcome to the official online archive of Computer Gaming World magazine, where you can read and download digitized versions* of the first 100 issues of the magazine, beginning with the first issue in November 1981, and then see covers of all the rest of the magazine's run through the final issue in November 2006.

Founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe, Computer Gaming World began life as a small, self-published, independent magazine for the then small community of computer game hobbyists (it was, in fact, the first magazine dedicated to the hobby), but grew over the years into one of the most important and powerful media voices in all of digital entertainment, thanks to its strong editorial voice and reputation for tough but fair reviews.

From its earliest days, covering games for the Atari and Apple II systems, through the recent era of blockbuster titles for high-end PCs, CGW has always been known for the expertise, passion, and talent of its editorial staff, from Johnny Wilson to Scorpia to Loyd Case and more, and this archive is dedicated to them. Have fun, and don't forget to save!

Extra special thanks to Stephane Racle, whose extraordinary scanning effort made all this possible. And don't forget that CGW has been reborn as Games for Windows: The Official Magazine. Check it out online at gfw.1up.com. (coming soon!)

Jeff Green Editor-in-Chief
Computer Gaming World
Games for Windows: The Official Magazine

*In PDF format. Requires Adobe Acrobat to view. Don't have it? Download Adobe Acrobat here.

Browse by year: 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 - 1999 2000 - 2006

FileFront - The Most Gaming Files on the Web

SETI has detected several signals emanating from the center of the Galaxy. Offical announcement on Tuesday at 10AM PST - FARK.com: (2352748)

I was hoping the signals were emanating from Uranus...

"SETI has detected several signals emanating from the center of the Galaxy. Offical announcement on Tuesday at 10AM PST"

FARK.com: (2352748) SETI has detected several signals emanating from the center of the Galaxy. Offical announcement on Tuesday at 10AM PST

(image by Perry Bible Fellowship, posted at Fark by helioquake)

Scott Adam's Nine-Point Formula for Financial Planning - The Big Picture: Dilbert's Unified Theory of Everything Financial'

Good comments (as usual) on this from Metafilter:

John Chow makes a good point in this post: http://www.johnchow.com/index.php/buying-vs-renting/ that it doesn't always make sense to buy a house.
posted by age at 8:21 PM PST on October 15

The advice I've heard and am following is to invest in high risk (stocks) and low risk (bonds) in a proportion correlated to your age. To elaborate, a 26 year old (like me) should invest 26% in low risk and 75% in high risk. A 40 year old should be 40% low and 60% high. The closer you get to retirement, the more secure you should want your investments to be in case of a big stock market calamity.

Maybe a bit too conservative for some, but food for thought, and a decent way to stay safe without sacrificing THAT much potential income - a sacrifice some are willing to make.
posted by evadery at 7:59 PM PST on October 15

More at the link.

"Fortunately for America's 95 million investors, Adams' secret nine-point formula was finally revealed in "Dilbert and the Way of the Weasels." Notice its simple brilliance in the exact reproduction of his formula:

1. Make a will

2 .Pay off your credit cards

3. Get term life insurance if you have a family to support

4. Fund your 401k to the maximum

5. Fund your IRA to the maximum

6. Buy a house if you want to live in a house and can afford it

7. Put six months worth of expenses in a money-market account

8. Take whatever money is left over and invest 70% in a stock index fund and 30% in a bond fund through any discount broker and never touch it until retirement

9. If any of this confuses you, or you have something special going on (retirement, college planning, tax issues), hire a fee-based financial planner, not one who charges a percentage of your portfolio"

The Big Picture: Dilbert's Unified Theory of Everything Financial'

WoW fans deconstruct South Park - Joystiq

I’d say this story is both exciting and sad, sort of like watching 2 rednecks fighting.

You start off hoping some teeth will get knocked out, but then realize that they probably don’t have many teeth to spare anyway.

"World of Warcraft fanatics have taken up their swords and a battle is being waged against villanous Wikipedia editors. At the center of this bloodfest is a listing of WOW incongruences found in the wiki entry of the latest South Park episode, 'Make Love, Not Warcraft.'

At this moment, it looks like the uppity Wiki elite have taken all of 'useless trivia' out, but we painstakingly copied all of the removed information (via the entry's history) and have it for you below after the break. If there is any missing continuity errors, be sure to let us know. Just don't blame us if someone laughs at you." (list at link)

WoW fans deconstruct South Park - Joystiq

Glowing Goo Tube - Enabling Devices

Who needs Google and YouTube? We got Goo Tubes, baby!

"Oozing Goo! Guaranteed to fascinate everyone. Push your switch and the goo-filled tube rotates while music plays and a powerful light turns on and shows the goo flow. Activation time is adjustable from 0 to 50 seconds. A great sensory experience!

Size: 10'L x 9½'W x 9½'H. Requires Capability Switch and 4 C Batteries." Enabling Devices: View Product

Friday web zen: classical zen

online classical
12 tone greatest hits
new music box
avant garde project
hooked on classical

plus...
happy 70th steve reich

web zen

Weebls Stuff - Kenya Live

Bizarre. Based off of weebl-stuff.com's 'Kenya'.

Forget Norway!!!

Weebls Stuff - Kenya Live

MICKEY MOUSE - DISNEY OUTRAGED BY MICKEY MOUSE'S 'GAY ROMP'

"Disney bosses are fuming after a video of Disney characters simulating sex was circulated on the internet. The two-and-a-half minute clip shows Disneyland staff dressed in costumes of Disney favourites MICKEY MOUSE, MINNIE MOUSE and GOOFY pretending to have sex in a variety of kinky poses. The clip is believed to have been shot by a backstage worker with a concealed camera at Disneyland Resort Paris. A source tells British newspaper The Sun, 'It's Disney characters as you've never seen them before. Goofy grabs Minnie's boobs but the highlight has to be Mickey's gay romp. 'The (Disney) organisation never tolerates any behaviour that could taint its spotless image. They will be desperate to get to the bottom of this.' A Disney spokeswoman said, 'We are aware of the video that was taken in an area not accessible to guests at Disneyland Resort Paris. 'We regret any offence it might cause. Action has been taken to prevent this happening again.'" MICKEY MOUSE - DISNEY OUTRAGED BY MICKEY MOUSE'S 'GAY ROMP'

Mexico to Yahoo: Not on our pyramid! | Tech&Sci | Internet | Reuters.com

"MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Lasers on our pyramid? No way!

Yahoo Inc. said on Wednesday it dropped plans to use Mexico's Teotihuacan archaeological site for its much-hyped 'time capsule' project after authorities fearing damage to the ancient ruins denied them permission.

Yahoo launched the project this week aimed at gathering text, images, video and sounds submitted by visitors from all over the world through 20 of the company's multi-language sites.

The information was to be beamed by laser into space on October 25 from the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan, once the center of a sprawling pre-Hispanic empire, in an attempt to communicate with extraterrestrial life.

'We did have the permit, but Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) told us Monday night that it could not be done,' Manuel Mazzanti, head of marketing at Yahoo Mexico, said on Wednesday." Mexico to Yahoo: Not on our pyramid! | Tech&Sci | Internet | Reuters.com

YouTube - Spamland#1

"What to do with those pesky spam emails - we've dramatised them."



YouTube - Spamland#1

Kiran Desai wins Booker Prize - The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Main News

The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Main News: "London, October 11
Kiran Desai, daughter of prominent Indian origin writer Anita Desai, created literary history by becoming the youngest ever woman to win the prestigious Man Booker Prize for her book “The Inheritance of Loss”at the age of 35.

Kiran won the 50,000 pounds prize last night for her second book, described by reviewers as a “radiant, funny and moving family saga” and “the best, sweetest, most delightful novel.”

Three novels by Kiran's mother, Anita Desai - 'Clear Light of Day', 'In Custody' and 'Fasting, Feasting'- had been earlier shortlisted for the prize but failed to make it.

Noted writer Salman Rushdie once described Kiran as a “terrific writer.”

The chairperson of the judges, Hermione Lee, said at the awards dinner at the Guildhall:“We are delighted to announce that the winner of the Man Booker Prize for 2006 is Kiran Desai’s “The Inheritance of Loss,”- a magnificent novel of humane breadth and wisdom, comic tenderness and powerful political acuteness.

“The winner was chosen, after a long, passionate and generous debate, from a shortlist of five other strong and original voices.” Born in India on September 3, 1971, Kiran is a student at Columbia University's Creative Writing Course. Her first novel, “Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard,” received accolades from many notable figures and an excerpt was featured in the New Yorker India Fiction issue, and in “Mirrorwork,” Salman Rushdie,s controversial anthology of 50 years of Indian writing.

Kiran is the first woman to win the Man Booker since 2000 when Margaret Atwood scooped the prize with “The Blind Assassin”. Kiran was presented the cheque for 50,000 pounds at the awards dinner."

Baby Boomer Death Counter Clock

Where the 1960's were the summer of love, the 2060's will the summer of pushing up daisies for the last of the Boomers!

Note: We initially called this web site boomer death clock but then noticed that there was a web site called death clock, so we switched to boomer death counter.

Baby Boomer Basics:

The generally accepted birth years of Baby Boomers is 1946-1964.

Kathleen Casey – Born 1 second after midnight on January 1st, 1946 is generally regarded as the "First Baby Boomer".

Has anyone made the claim of being the very last Baby Boomer? This would be someone who just lost the New Years baby contest for 1965.

(clock at link)

Baby Boomer Death Counter Clock

Boing Boing: Google buys YouTube: GooTube.

Mark Cuban, who last week said that only a "moron" would buy YouTube, today writes in a post titled "I still think Google is crazy :)" --

It will be interesting to see what happens next and what happens in the copyright world. I still think Google Lawyers will be a busy, busy bunch. I dont think you can sue Google into oblivion, but as others have mentioned, if Google gets nailed one single time for copyright violation, there are going to be more shareholder lawsuits than doans has pills to go with the pile on copyright suits that follow. Think maybe how Google discloses what they perceive the copyright risk to be in the SEC filings might be an interesting read ? (more)

Boing Boing: Google buys YouTube: GooTube.

Meet Thumbelina, the world's smallest horse | the Daily Mail

<-. |_ . -> WTF.

"'She was just a complete fluke and we call her a mini mini.

'When she was young she found the dog kennels and decided she wanted to bed-in with the dogs, rather than with bigger horses.

'She spends all her time playing with the spaniels, but we have to try and stop her grazing on grass, because she is not allowed to eat too much.'

Thumbelina survives on a cup of grain and handful of hay, served twice-a-day.

Normal horses lives for about 35 years, but she is only likely to live up to the age of 17 because of her size.

She has the ability to become pregnant and give birth to foals, but her owners have decided not to allow this to happen.

Mr Goessling, 39, said: 'There could be complications during the pregnancy, so we think it is better to avoid the risks." (more article) Meet Thumbelina, the world's smallest horse | the Daily Mail

pumpkin carving - pumpkingutter.com - Scott Cummins

The pumpkins are arranged in albums according to year.

Main Menu

Become a police officer in New York City - NYPD Recruit - Home

"Crime is at a historic low in New York City. NYPD is recognized by industry experts as the nation's leader in crime reduction. Build your career with us and learn law enforcement from the best in the industry. NYPD offers a job with a future, a great place to serve, a chance to advance. Learn more."

NYPD Recruit - Home

Thain's Book - Guide to Tolkien's Middle-earth

"Welcome to The Thain's Book, an encyclopedia of the people, places, creatures, things, and events in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. Entries include descriptions, histories, important dates, genealogies, etymologies, illustrations, sources and cross-references."

Thain's Book - Guide to Tolkien's Middle-earth

What is consciousness? Seed: On My Mind: V.S. Ramachandran

"What is consciousness? This really breaks down into two questions: The first is the nature of qualia--how does the awareness of sensations like bitter, or painful, or red arise from the activity of neurons? The second: How does the sense of self—the person who experiences qualia—arise?

It has been suggested that the first problem is more tractable and should be tackled before going on to the issue of the self, which has elements of unity, continuity, a sense of agency and less obviously, the attachment of meaning to mere sensations. I disagree. I suggest that qualia (e.g., visual awareness) and self are two sides of a coin; you cannot solve the qualia problem without understanding the self. The reason is obvious: You cannot have 'free floating' qualia without a self to experience them and to give them meaning." (more) Seed: On My Mind: V.S. Ramachandran

North Korea has conducted a nuclear test, against wishes of entire planet. In other news, welcome to the Nuclear Club, you crazy b

LOL, I love the t-shirt image that I found on Google. Enough of that shizzle, though. The real fun is the links near the bottom. GO... NUKES... ASIA!!!

" North Korea has conducted a nuclear test, against wishes of entire planet. In other news, welcome to the Nuclear Club, you crazy bastards"

FARK.com: (2338456) North Korea has conducted a nuclear test, against wishes of entire planet. In other news, welcome to the Nuclear Club, you crazy bastards

Report: Google in talks to buy YouTube - Yahoo! News

Report: Google in talks to buy YouTube - Yahoo! News

YouTube - bob ross owned

YouTube - bob ross owned

YouTube - Lord of the Rings by George Lucas

"An animated documentary spoofing George Lucas. What if George Lucas had directed Lord of the Rings?"



YouTube - Lord of the Rings by George Lucas

LostBum - Mountain Dew (Shaun White interview on CNN)

LostBum - Mountain Dew

PopCap Games - Rocket Mania

How to Play Rocket Mania

Click the fuses to rotate them.

Use the fuses to connect a burning match to one or more rockets.

Earn coins for launching multiple rockets at one time. Collect them to upgrade your rockets!

PopCap Games - Rocket Mania

Friday web zen: more time kill zen

rock game
remember the dots
block swap
wheels of salvation
rocket mania
farm hustle

web zen

Killing the Buddha - a magazine on religion

(from the Manifesto)

"Killing the Buddha is a religion magazine for people made anxious by churches, people embarrassed to be caught in the "spirituality" section of a bookstore, people both hostile and drawn to talk of God. It is for people who somehow want to be religious, who want to know what it means to know the divine, but for good reasons are not and do not. If the religious have come to own religious discourse it is because they alone have had places where religious language could be spoken and understood. Now there is a forum for the supposedly non-religious to think and talk about what religion is, is not and might be. Killing the Buddha is it.

The idea of "killing the Buddha" comes from a famous Zen line, the context of which is easy to imagine: After years on his cushion, a monk has what he believes is a breakthrough: a glimpse of nirvana, the Buddhamind, the big pay-off. Reporting the experience to his master, however, he is informed that what has happened is par for the course, nothing special, maybe even damaging to his pursuit. And then the master gives the student dismaying advice: If you meet the Buddha, he says, kill him.

Why kill the Buddha? Because the Buddha you meet is not the true Buddha, but an expression of your longing. If this Buddha is not killed he will only stand in your way.

Why Killing the Buddha ? For our purposes, killing the Buddha is a metaphor for moving past the complacency of belief, for struggling honestly with the idea of God. As people who take faith seriously, we are endlessly amazed and enraged that religious discourse has become so bloodless, parochial and boring. Any God worth the name is none of these things. Yet when people talk about God they are talking mainly about the Buddha they meet. For fear of seeming intolerant or uncertain, or just for lack of thinking, they talk about a God too small to be God.

Killing the Buddha is about finding a way to be religious when we're all so self-conscious and self-absorbed. Knowing more than ever about ourselves and the way the world works, we gain nothing through nostalgia for a time when belief was simple, and even less from insisting that now is such a time. Killing the Buddha will ask, How can we be religious without leaving part of ourselves at the church or temple door? How can we love God when we know it doesn't matter if we do? Call it God for the godless. Call it the search for a God we can believe in: A God that will not be an embarrassment in twelve-thousand years. A God we can talk about without qualifications.

Killing the Buddha insists that if religion matters at all it matters enough to be taken to task. We believe it’s high time for a new canon to be created, and that the Web is just the place to collect it. We refuse to accept the internet as a world wide shopping mall. We know intuitively it can be a sort of Talmudic cathedral, a tool of transcendence made of words. We’re here to build it. If the end result looks more like Babel than the City of God, so be it. Babel, after all, came close.

Thanks for reading."

KtB: Updated 10-05-06

The Curse of Superman - linkfilter.net

"Isn't there something known as a Superman curse...a series of misfortunes hit people involved in adaptations of Superman in various mediums?

The curse has particularly plagued actors who have played the role of Superman on film and television. These include the infamous tragedies of Superman actors George Reeves and Christopher Reeve.

And there's more ...."

linkfilter.net - fresh links daily

Boing Boing: Foley/GOP logo mashup tees: Pedophant

Pretty slick, only $12.00!

Man, who knew IM chats could be so creepy? We were just as surprised not-surprised as everyone else to find that a creep like Mark "Maf54" Foley exists in Congress. Actually, more than anything we were surpised any member of Congress has the time to cyber it up with a child when there are more pressing matters going on like breaking our TVs, defending a false war, and redefining torture.

Rather than lose sleep about all of this we decided to do what we do best: draw up a Foley-Elephant hybrid manimal with it's nuts in an American flag banana hammock and slap it on a t-shirt. Bonus, the shirts have one of three random quotes from the chat logs (do yourself a favor and read this, it's creep-tastic). " (more)

Boing Boing: Foley/GOP logo mashup tees: Pedophant

Little People - a tiny street art project

Little People - a tiny street art project

'Monster' fossil find in Arctic - BBC NEWS | Science/Nature

Oo. That's gotta smart, getting snapped up by a giant sea-going dinosaur. RAWR!

"Norwegian scientists have discovered a 'treasure trove' of fossils belonging to giant sea reptiles that roamed the seas at the time of the dinosaurs.

The 150 million-year-old fossils were uncovered on the Arctic island chain of Svalbard - about halfway between the Norwegian mainland and the North Pole.

The finds belong to two groups of extinct marine reptiles - the plesiosaurs and the ichthyosaurs.

One skeleton has been nicknamed The Monster because of its enormous size.

These animals were the top predators living in what was then a relatively cool, deep sea." (more)

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | 'Monster' fossil find in Arctic

The Nietzsche Family Circus

"In heaven, all the interesting people are missing."

The Nietzsche Family Circus pairs a randomized Family Circus cartoon with a randomized Friedrich Nietzsche quote. Refresh the page to see a new comic.

The Nietzsche Family Circus

Bernanke: Baby Boomers Will Strain U.S.

Unless Social Security and Medicare are revamped, the massive burden from retiring baby boomers will place major strains on the nation's budget and the economy, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Wednesday.

"Reform of our unsustainable entitlement programs" should be a priority, he said in prepared remarks to the Economics Club of Washington. "The imperative to undertake reform earlier rather than later is great," Bernanke added.

It marked the Fed chief's most extensive comments to date on the challenges facing the United States with the looming retirement of 78 million baby boomers.

In his remarks, Bernanke did not offer Congress and the Bush administration recommendations on how the massive entitlement programs should be changed. Efforts by the administration to overhaul the Social Security program _ once a centerpiece of President Bush's second-term agenda _ sputtered last year, meeting resistance from Republicans and Democrats alike.

As the population ages, the nation will have to choose among higher taxes, less non-entitlement spending by the government, a reduction in spending on entitlement programs, a sharply higher budget deficit or some combination thereof, Bernanke said.

Government spending on Social Security and Medicare alone will increase from about 7 percent of the total size of the U.S. economy to almost 13 percent by 2030 and to more than 15 percent by 2050, he said.

Bernanke declared: "The fiscal consequences of these trends are large and unavoidable."

The government recorded a budget deficit of $319 billion last year. This year's red ink is projected by the White House to total around $296 billion.

Financially shoring up Social Security and Medicare will involve difficult choices by lawmakers and other policymakers, Bernanke said.

For instance, if the government tried to finance projected entitlement spending entirely by revenue increases, the taxes collected by the federal government would have to rise from about 18 percent of the total size of the economy to about 24 percent in 2030, he said.

In his speech, Bernanke did not discuss the future course of interest rates.

The Federal Reserve meets next on Oct. 24-25, and many economists believe the policymakers will leave rates unchanged for the third meeting in a row.

With the economy slowing, the central bank in early August decided to halt _ for the first time _ a two-year long campaign to boost interest rates to fend off inflation. Policymakers suggested that the cooling economy would eventually lessen inflation pressures.

There's been relief on the inflation front as once-surging energy prices have settled down. Gasoline prices, which had topped $3 a gallon in the summer, have slid and are now averaging $2.31 a gallon nationwide, the Energy Department says.

BREITBART.COM - Bernanke: Baby Boomers Will Strain U.S.