Mat Bowles

Gritty political thriller about a corruption scandal in which car companies buy up Los Angeles' streetcar network, purely so they can rip it up, thus forcing the public to buy more cars. Also features a cartoon rabbit.

jonnelledge

I am a qualified doctor of Neuroscience, so am aware of many long and complex words which I often use to convince people I know what I’m talking about, when in reality I am just exploiting their ignorance for my own amusement. As such, I feel I would be an ideal candidate for the post of doctor of homeopathy.

Athough I am comftable wit my knoledge of homepaty, and I liv neaby, I stll feel tht othr aplicants wit medcal quafications stnd a beter chnce thn me. Wit tht in mnd, I’ve dcided to remov caracters frm my words, as yu cn see. As a tru homepath, I flt tht th les caracters I usd in my wrds, th mor efective they woud be.

davidnm

My education so far includes two degrees in real sciences, a BSc in Physics and an MSc in Astrophysics, and I’m currently working toward a PhD in Astronomy. Thus one day, unlike your homeopath, I may actually be a doctor! As I have no actual medical qualifications, any medical knowledge in my brain is diluted to an extreme degree – and thus, from the basic principles of homeopathy, this means that I must be an extremely good doctor.

• A quick guide to the British voting system for the EU elections | Nosemonkey's EUtopia
  There are elections next week across the UK. In Britain, the votes are counted using the D'Hondt closed list PR system. This is one of the few electoral systems I've encountered I consider to be worse than the one we use for Westminster, when you get critics attacking "PR", they're having a go at this pile of arse, which no one sane suggests for Westminster (and Labour had to force through the Lords after a lot of opposition). If you're not sure who to vote for, and don't want to spend too much time thinking about it, go out and vote either Lib Dem or Green; there's a small chance the BNP could win a seat in the North West. Giving Nick Griffin a tax funded salary and the ability to hire a bunch of staff just doesn't appeal. It's unlikely he'll get in, but it could happen. So just go vote, please? Even if the system is arse, the EU parliament does actually have power these days, even if it's not as much as would be liked.
  (tags: elections europe eu BNP electoral+reform d'hondt)
• Self destructing product catalogue
  Not a bad bit of viral marketing this: what happens when the stuff on the display screen starts falling over. A nicely animated product catalogue as it slowly blows itself up.
  (tags: humour funny flash marketing)
• Blogging in the 19th Century: The Future of Journalism | The Lay Scientist
  I pretty much agree with this. Most of us writing our own personal blogs and journals are copying the old small press pamphleteers and chain letter writers. We're just doing it with better technology. Most of the established newspapers grew out of various small presses—the biggest blogs online now have copied this model, bringing in lots of individuals to create a more coherent whole.
  (tags: blogging journalism pampleteering campaigning)
• Jon Worth » Some wacky ways to improve the EU
  Some of them really are a bit daft, yes, but still worth thinking about. What the antis always seem to miss is that most supporters of EU membership also constantly argue for reform of the system. That it's a bit crap isn't disputed, how to improve it is. Bit like everything else in life really.
  (tags: EU europe politics reform)
• UKIP's "Britain paying the EU £40 million a day" claim vs the REAL costs of UK EU membership | Nosemonkey's EUtopia
  A UKIP campaign slogan that doesn't make sense and is based on unfounded and uncosted hyperbole? really? Never would've guessed.
  (tags: UKIP Europe EU elections misinformation)
• Spawning A Campaign - diffrentcolours
  There are Euro elections due. One of the issues the EU legislates on is software patents, the Free Software Foundation thinks we should ask the candidates their views on this. Makes sense to me, go do it...
  (tags: software patents freedom europe EU elections)
• Annals of Innovation: How David Beats Goliath: Reporting & Essays: The New Yorker
  The underdog can always win if enough effort is put in. Being able to put that effort in is the main barrier. Does this apply to any walk of life, if at all?
  (tags: activism sport inspiration psychology)
• The Cute Cat Theory Talk at ETech » My heart's in Accra
  Makes sense to me: a successful web technology will have cute cats, porn and activism. If it doesn't have a mix of the three, something isn't working right.
  (tags: cats theory internet activism web2.0)
• 386 - My Kingdom for a Beer? Heineken's Eurotopia « Strange Maps
  This, however, is one of the crazier ideas for solving the EU governance issue—when the paranoid fringes talk about 'plots to break up Britain'? This is the sort of thing they're referring to. But, y'know, interesting idea, even if he does make godawful beer.
  (tags: europe EU maps)
• 105 — The Tory Atlas of the World — Strange Maps
  Apparently from a Spitting Image annual from the mid 80s. It's really quite funny and rather accurate. Note to those supporting Cameron's modern Conservative party (or even those that can remember Major). Yes, Thatcher's Tories really were like this. Some of them still are. That the majority of MPs after the next General Election will be 'untainted' by this association doesn't mean those of us that can remember will trust them.
  (tags: funny maps tories politics Thatcher)
• The perils of an identity system - The Web of Evil
  If your identity has been used by a fraudster, and you're required to log all your movements, the authorities will keep trying to arrest you. And a national mandatory identity scheme WILL get cracked by a fraudster almost instantaneously. WebOfEvil shares a personal anecdote
  (tags: NIR ID+cards identity)
• Warner Music to Warner Music: You are pirates! - Boing Boing
  Dear Warner. Getting YouTube to remove your subsidiaries officially posted music vids because they infringe your copyright means that people won't see your videos. You know, the ones you paid for to advertise your product? Is there a chance that, at some time soon, the recording industry will grow up and get a clue?
  (tags: dmca video youtube warner stupidity)
• Would be Bond villain seeks femme fatale - m4w
  Paging George! This bloke seems perfect for you girl...
  (tags: funny ads personals supervillains)
• Kid keeping a lending library of banned books in his her locker - Boing Boing
  Heh—banning books from teens makes them more likely to want to read them. So a kid running a library of banned books is encouraging her schoolfriends to read more. Cool
  (tags: books subversion censorship)
• How Ursula K Le Guin led a generation away from realism | Books | guardian.co.uk
  I never did understand the whole "he'll grow out of it" approach to my liking of SF and fantasy when I was a teen, why would I WANT to grow out of it? Just because I like Asimov and Stross doesn't mean I can't appreciate Nabokov (who wrote some SF anyway) or the likes, just as liking Therapy doesn't prevent me also liking Dvorak or Gershwin. Silly elitist snobs. Still, at least we're winning...
  (tags: writing culture fantasy sf books)
• Hoversnail goes WHIRRRRRRRRRRRRVOOM.
  Really. It's a hoversnail. It's cool. Go look.
  (tags: funny pictures)

• IM represents 'new linguistic renaissance' | The Register
  I still dislike using IM, but the snobs are wrong: far from ruining teenagers' ability to communicate, IM lets teenagers show off what they can do with language
  (tags: language linguistics)
• Science and SF articles needed
  For the science writers and reviewers out there, Nick Mamatas needs feature articles for his Clarkesworld magazine. He'll even pay you.
  (tags: writing nick+mamatas)
• La conductrice qui jouit
  Note to train drivers - if you're going to have a wank after making an announcement to the whole train, turn off the intercom first? (from Popbitch, natch)
  (tags: humour masturbation)
• Girly B Icons - Various Academia Quotes
  There are some rather good ones in this set, haven't figured out what to yoink yet but will definitely grab something
  (tags: icons livejournal)
• Who to vote for - The Public Whip
  Not a bad little tool, biased against the Govt but not horribly so, picks 14 issues of the last few years and you get to compare your opinion to the party voting record, includes stuff like the smoking ban and fox hunting, not all dry stuff
  (tags: politics predictions public+whip)
• redscharlach: Blackadder II mini-icons: Two spikes would be an extravagance
  These are brilliant
  (tags: blackadder livejournal icons)
• Liberal Conspiracy » Forza, Viola
  Jarndyce is spot on with this one: The notion that sport and politics should never mix is a curious, and also deeply political, one. Sport, after all, is just the waging of international politics by other means
  (tags: sports politics)

• drjon: After a short stay in America, David returned to Florence...
  Picture. Rather amusing
  (tags: Humour)
• Time Freezy HyperSlush(tm)
  picture. Also funny
  (tags: Humour)
• DS is 'toxic drug' that poisons children, claims Daily Mail DS news, Pocket Gamer
  Rosie Millard: worst parent ever to write an editorial?
  (tags: Rosie+Millard Nintendo+DS)
• Has the heaviest element been found? - New Scientist Space
  I think I even understand the science of this one; thanks pTerry! Could a superheavy element â“ heavier than anything previously found in nature or made in the lab â“ exist naturally in the rocks of Earth?
  (tags: science)
• baseballchica03: Indiana Jones, woot!
  Jen has a poll and some scans on the new film. Which I'm going to go see. Even if I go alone. It's not Bond, but it's still cool.
  (tags: Indiana+Jones)
• Games - About Dyson
  Annoyingly addictive, the telescopes game especially
  (tags: games flash+games)
• Solar System Visualizer
  Flash thing. Fun
  (tags: flash cool maps planets astronomy science)
• George Orwell, 'Politics and the English Language,' 1946
  Justin linked to this earlier, and it's as true today as it was then.
  (tags: politics writing language George+Orwell)
• Milk and Cheese @ MySpace Dark Horse Presents
  A reason to go to MySpace regularly? This are not good. Actually, it is good, it's damn good, Milk and Cheese are back online. This are very very good.
  (tags: MySpace comics)

New Statesman - Richard Reeves

Wrote the bio of JS Mill I'm currently reading, which means I like him already. Very interesting set of columns, well worth looking over, even if they are in Staggers.

Edible Dirt,—Easter Sunday, Jesus wakes up

Not original, probably offensive to those that care, rather funny

10 Unfortunate Facts of Life | f*cking c*nts

This amused, it's about time I cleared it from my linklog and actually posted it somewhere

theweaselking: Abortion discussion

Key quote from comments: "It's a hard enough choice without having to make it in an alley. I'll always be pro choice, period."

Why I am an abortion doctor

Read this: 'I can take a woman, in the biggest trouble she has ever experienced in her life, and by performing a five-minute operation, in comfort and dignity, I can give her back her life' Safe, legal, rare, why is there still a controversy?

How to Pack Up & Leave LiveJournal (A Tutorial) (://URLFAN)

Not a bad little how-to. Not how I'd do it specifically, I've already backed up everything including comments to a Wordpress install, but still not bad.

drjon: The LJ Strike (which is today)

Containts a nice little history of previous fusses on the site, with a balanced overview and points out that, well, we've won already

Pharyngula: EXPELLED!

Creationists premiere dodgy movie near home of famous science blogger, specifically ban him from viewing, but not his family or his guest. This is a really dumb move...

It's Just a Game... - Review: The Bible

Funny: "Summary: A confused film, half effects laden, no-brain blockbuster, half cinema-verite talking-heads, lacking a conclusion or climax to justify the budget. Poor plotting and characterisation lead the audience to sympathise with the villains rather

FT.com | The Undercover Economist | Dear Economist: How can I create an incentive scheme to keep our house clean?

Sounds familiar: "My fiancee is moving in with me. We’ve lived together before, and we hate housework. Before, we didn’t do work in retaliation for housework not done by the other." Good to know that even economics doesn't have all the answers

Ann Bryn-Evans, joint Wessex district manager for The Pagan Federation, said: "We were hoping for some dry weather but I think I have changed my mind.

"We'll be doing some rain magic to bring the rain and wash it away."

Torrential rain hits Dorset towns

some areas received more than two months' rain in just 24 hours

Idea for this post from hennel @ topicalcomedy