Shoot Her With Your Gun! Shoot. Her. With. Your. Gun!

You know, it really takes something evil and downright stinky to make us actually "like" Sarah Palin....*shudder* Thanks, Kate Gosselin. You are truly the most miserable, self-centered bitch in the Universe. We don't think we could dislike you any more than we do.

The Sarah Palin Experience or whatever the hell it's called makes our skin crawl, yet we just had to tune in to the Kate Gosselin guest apprearance show to see what really happened. Was Kate really that disgreeable? OH HELL YES.

Sarah, Sarah, Sarah! Sigh. You had a huge-ass bear gun on you and yet you failed to tag the biggest bear in the entire Alaskan wilds, Kate Gosselin. Or at least taser her miserable butt to the freezing river. Just one episode earlier you were jumping for joy to take the life of a perfectly happy caribou. Why leave Kate to wallow in her misery? The episode before that, you were excited to skin and gut fish. Why not kill, skin and gut Kate Gosselin? You know she deserves it!

We watched an episode of Kate + Eight, once. The new show, not the old one where Jon Gosselin would roll his eyes at Kate and look like he wanted to die. This new show is the upper eschelon of disgusting. It was the one where Kate takes the kids to New York City. Should have been fun, right? Not with Kate in micro mini skirt and 7 inch high heels running to get ice cream two blocks away from the bus where the kids are parked and screaming the entire way back, "It's melting! It's melting!", then practically throwing the ice cream cones at the kids screaming "You'll like it! Eat it before it melts" while rolling her eyes at the cameras as if it say "Kids! What can you do? You can't kill them and you can't marry them off before they are eighteen."

Kate, why did you have to have 8 kids in the first place, if all they do is bother and annoy you?

Kate Gosselin (hahah she still has Jon's name) is literally the world's worst mother. Dina Lohan laughs at you Kate. Yes, Dina Lohan.

The kids were having a blast with Sarah Palin..well with the wilds of Alaska actually. They were running wild, collecting firewood, having a hamburger and moose dog barbecue and generally living up the camping in the wild experience. Sarah hit it on the head when she said "IF they had stayed the kids NEVER in their life would have forgotten camping out overnight in Alaska."

As it was, Kate, once she learned her hot dog was moose, threw it to the ground and called back the airplane to take them back to their hotel. But first, she disowned her kids and undermined their self-esteem by asking them if they wanted to stay. When all 8 kids said yes, she said.."Well there you go. You are all Palins now and not Gosselins". She actually said that. WHAT A FUCKING BITCH.

NOTE TO CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES: TAKE THE GOSSELIN KIDS AWAY FROM THAT WOMAN! AND FOR GOD'S SAKE, PLEASE MAKE TLC STOP FILMING THEM!

We crave a world in which we never heard of people like Kate Gosselin, Elin Nordgren, The Real Housewives of the Jersey Shore and Sarah Palin. Reality TV brings much joy to our world...such as Survivor - Hey Jeff! and Amazing Race...yes, even The Situation makes us laugh but the rest of the lot we can leave behind. And Kate Gosselin...well she can just go back to the slime pit she crawled out of. Next time, Sarah, USE YOUR GUN!

Russia's Got Talent!

When we viewed this video this morning we literally couldn't stop laughing!

That Vladamir Putin is a HOOT! Not only can the guy run a country, tag wild animals as an amateur wildlife biologist, fly airplanes and helicopters, ride motorcycles, kick ass as a black belt in judo, woo the ladies of the world, mountain ski black diamond runs, oil paint, swim marathon laps, deep sea dive, hunt and fish and love all animals BUT the guy is the Russian Susan Boyle AND plays the piano!

Warning: Possibly the funniest/greatest/awesomest thing you'll ever see.
Don't roll over in your grave Fats...this is the Mother of all Tributes!

And he did it all for charity. He was raising money for children's cancer research. Check out all the Hollywood celebs in attendance...Kurt Russell!
And that's Kevin Costner giving a standing O!

WTG, Vlad! We absolutely cannot hide our unabashed love for you! It's amazing how willing we are to overlook that, you know, KGB brutal dictator thing.

Rare John James Audubon Book to be Auctioned

"Barn Owls"

Article by Gregory Katz (in entirety)

LONDON — To some it's just a bunch of bird drawings. To others, John James Audubon's "Birds of America" is a rare blend of art, natural history and craftsmanship, unique enough to be the world's most expensive book, expected to fetch more than $9.5 million at a London auction Tuesday.

Some of the world's wealthiest book collectors have been anticipating this auction for months: it represents a chance to own one of the best preserved editions of Aubudon's masterpiece, with its 435 revered, hand-colored illustrations.

Audubon was part frontiersman, part artist, and possessed a rare, almost unequaled ability to observe, catalog and paint the birds he observed in the wild. Experts say the book he produced is unmatched in its beauty and also of considerable scientific value, justifying its stratospheric cost.

Pom Harrington, owner of the Peter Harrington rare book firm in London, said it has been 10 years since the last complete edition of "Birds of America," with all of the illustrations, has been auctioned – and that was sold for $8.8 million by Christie's auction house in 2000, a record for a printed book at auction.

The quality of the edition being offered Tuesday by Sotheby's is extremely high, Harrington said, and it is unusual to find one not in a museum or academic institution.

"If you want to buy an example of a rare work of art, this is one of the best," he said. "It is valuable in its artistic nature because it is so well drawn."

The plates were printed in black and white and hand colored afterward. That made the production process extremely expensive, especially since it was carried out by "the best artists of the time," Harrington said.

The collection of 435 hand-colored prints, made from engravings of Audubon's watercolors, measures more than 3 feet by 2 feet (90 centimeters by 60 centimeters) because Audubon wanted to paint the birds life size.

The size of the illustrations makes them extremely valuable as standalone pieces of art, which makes the complete edition vulnerable to being broken up so the individual prints can be sold one-by-one.

Harrington said the wild turkey that is depicted in the first big plate of the book can be sold for $200,000.

But Mark Ghahramani, a rare book specialist at Classic Bindings in London, said it is unlikely the "Birds of America" will be divided up for resale because it is probably more valuable if left intact.

"There are very few copies left of the entire book, so I would think that whoever bought it at the auction would be quite interested in keeping it whole," he said. "Anything to do with American natural history is quite valuable."

Audubon, who died in 1851, represents a unique figure in American history, a renaissance man with shades of Huckleberry Finn – like Mark Twain's fictional character, Audubon made an epic voyage down the mighty Mississippi – but with a scientist's inquisitive nature.

He made his trip, after his dry-goods business failed, with only a rifle, an assistant, and a drawing pad, making illustrations of as many birds as he could find.

He did not find a printer in the United States willing to take on the book, with its oversize illustrations, but sailed to England, eventually finding printers in Edinburgh, Scotland, and in London.

The volume is seen as a vital piece of American history, Harrington said.

"It is the most important natural history book for America," he said. "That is the main point. It screams Americana. For an American patriot, it is the greatest book on American heritage - there is no competition."

"Sotherby's employees examine the four-volume hand-drawn tome.
The collection of 435 hand-coloured prints, made from
engravings of Audubon's watercolours, measures more
than 3ft by 2ft because he wanted to paint the birds life-size. "

Mill Grove - Audubon's Pennsylvania Home Website

UPDATE:
SOLD!! $10, 270,000 DOLLARS TO AN ANONYMOUS TELEPHONE BIDDER! Over $10 MILLION DOLLARS! The most expensive book EVER sold.

Nobel Peace Prize Debacle

Well, if you thought last years Peace Prize Laureate, Barack Obama, was a farce, then you'll just love what is happening this year.

The Peace Prize was awarded in October to Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, a political prisoner locked up somewhere in China.

This of course angered China. But seriously, what the hell doesn't?

However, and surprisingly, it has also offended NINETEEN other countries that are BOYCOTTING the annual ceremony in Oslo.

Those countries are: China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Colombia, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Serbia, Iraq , Iran, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Venezuela, the Philippines, Egypt, Sudan, Ukraine, Cuba and Morocco.

Most (all) of these countries are human rights serial violators and of course would offer solidarity to a country that locks people up for being "dissidents." We are not surprised.

Xiaobo, a 54-year-old writer and academic, was jailed in December 2009 to serve an 11-year term for subversion.

Hipster Cat Says:

War on Easter Island

Native Easter Islander injured during this weekend clash with Chile

A dispute over one hundred years in the making is taking a horrific toll on the native Rapa Nui of Easter Island. The island is famous for it's giant head statues called the Moai (Mo-I).

Clashes between the Chilean government and native islanders have escalated into a full out war that has everyone on the tiny piece of land on edge and feeling desperate.

Although the island of Rapa Nui has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it was annexed by Chile in 1888 and is owned by Chile to this day. Natives fearing the crush of tourism have taken over certain parts of the island and are according to Chilean officials "squatting in government owned buildings."

The latest round of clashes have left over 25 people injured as police have fired rubber bullets and gas canisters into crowds, shooting one man, a documentary filmmaker, over 14 times in the backside. The woman pictured above was hit in the head by police "at close range."

The natives are both petrified and raging mad over the fact that they think Chile wants to turn the island into a "theme park" for tourists by expanding the runways and clearing land for more resort hotels.

Traditionally, Easter Island (Rapa Nui) has been one of the remotest and cut-off places on the entire planet. It is a tiny dot, thousands of miles off the coast of Chile. Even today, it is a tough place to get to. You have to really want to get there.

Chile wants to change all this and make the island more tourist friendly.

Property disputes are at this point decades old, are stalled in courts and the people are literally just moving back in to buildings that technically belong to the Chilean government, but on lands held by the people themselves for thousands of years.

Chilean Interior Minister Rodrigo Hinzpeter, travelled to Rapa Nui and declared to the local newspaper, La Tercera, that "the threat that land seizures pose to law and order cannot be allowed to continue. There is a limit to these things and it was reached when there are illegal takeovers that cause damage to the island. The police forces acted in compliance with a court order. That's how institutions function, and we all must follow them."

Mr. Hinzpeter added that the government "has acted with patience and prudence; we've put forth a plan to invest 250 million US dollars in Easter Island - 20 times more than what was invested in the last 20 years".

He then said the (island native) negotiators have refused to meet with them.

We're suspicious of this. $250 million dollars sounds like a lot of runway expansion and new hotels, like the locals are claiming, not new schools, farms or local sustainability. If the Chilean government wanted to help the native population, a few schools, supermarkets, infrastructure and statue conservation, wouldn't cost upwards of $250 million. It stands to reason that the Chilean government does have a lot invested in booming tourism and wants to put that money into more daily flights, cruise ship ports and resort hotels.


Read more:

BBC News article

News article

And the Winners Are:

Not the United States!

Winning bids for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups were announced a few minutes ago and the US lost out to:

Russia: 2018
Qatar: 2022

Brazil gets the 2014 World Cup so that means the US isn't eligible for a World Cup for the next 15 years. At least.

SURVIVOR: Quitters Incorporated

"We quit you!"

In the most fucked up episode of Survivor to date - and believe us, there's been many a fucked up moment - two players quit one after the other in perfect succession and in a parade of stupidity.

First, the episode was already in the Twilight Zone for the worst cross-promotion of anything we've ever seen. The reward challenge was to lug around a giant "Gulliver" through an obstacle course. First team through won a first look a the new Gulliver's Travel movie starring Jack Black. We were appalled.

At least we thought so. We didn't know that what was coming next would be even more appalling.

At the end of the challenge, when the winning team was celebrating, stupid Naonka told Jeff that she was done and would be leaving that night. Jeff asked if she was quitting and she said Yes. A stunned Jeff Probst quickly glanced around the remaining Survivors and asked "Does anyone else want to quit?"

Before he could even finish his sentence, "Purple" Kelly had her arm up.

Wha?

This led to a mini-tirade by Jeff who ended it like a boss who refuses a 2-week notice. He basically told them to think it over.

At this point he informed the winning team that if one of them would give up the reward itself he would give the entire tribe a new tarp and some rice to get through the next 11 days.

Silence....crickets...shocked and appalled faces trained on Naonka WHO JUST GAVE UP THE SHOW AND STILL REFUSED TO STEP UP AND GIVE UP REWARD FOR OTHER FOOD FOR THE TRIBE.

Quote "I wasn't about to give up my food. I ain't no fool."

No Naonka, you are not a fool. What you are is an asshole, a despicable bitch and pretty much a worthless sack of shit.

At Tribal Council it was pouring rain. The only one that looked good was Jeff. As always. There wasn't even a vote. The 2 quitters went home after a grilling from Jeff, who was astonished that Naonka said she still thought she could've won.

Add delusional to the list of adjectives to describe this loathsome woman. As a soaking wet God, Jeff couldn't have been in even more shock than was already laid on him from the entire day of quitters. He asked her again and she said the same.

As punishment Jeff extinguished Naonka's and Kelly's torches and did not give them back to them. He instead propped them up in Tribal Council as "a reminder that you quit."

Did we ever mention we love Jeff Probst? Of course we did! He explains on his blog why these 2 were allowed to stay on the jury. We still don't buy it and think they should have been sent all the way home.

Jeff's Blog at EW.com

ROSA PARKS DAY

We are celebrating Rosa Parks today and the remarkable chain of events she set into motion on this day in 1955 when she refused to give up her seat on the bus to a white man. It's not called Rosa Parks Day, but it should be. We are coining the term and will honor it every December 1st.

Rosa Parks wasn't a hero that day. A seamstress, she was an over-worked, under-appreciated blue collar worker, who after spending her entire day on her feet doing her job just wanted to sit the fuck down and catch a ride home to make dinner and get some sleep before doing it all over again. She had no idea at the time that she was the catalyst, the very straw that broke the camel's back and would be the hero saviour of the Civil Rights Movement.

The South of Not-So-Long-Ago or Old was heaven and hell. Amongst the genteel facade, mint juleps and wide verandas, there were many brutal acts against blacks happening every day. After slavery ended the venomous attitude of the white men (and women) got so much worse. They just couldn't believe that blacks were allowed to wander around in the free and clear messing up the scenery, taking jobs and just being there. They enacted Jim Crow laws and created segregation to compensate for the uppity black folk who dared be born below the Mason-Dixon line. The KKK was born and lynchings became a common thing. Years of this built up and built up until that fateful day on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama.

And yes, Rosa Parks IS A HERO. God bless her tired feet and her sick and tired of this bullshit attitude. Her act of rebellion encouraged Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. to ride to the rescue, the Montgomery bus boycott got underway and after alot more trials and tribulations segregation was ENDED. Hallelujah!

We remember this day as one of the most important days in all of American history. In fact, it might be THE most important day in modern times. And Rosa Parks? She is undoubtedly, without question, one of the most admirable, honorable, important, inspirational, iconoclastic, and beloved Americans of all time. She is the Ultimate Role Model. Her beautiful, strong soul lives on as long as we remember to question authority and always stand up for what is right and for those who cannot fend for themselves.

Rosa Parks Museum

World Aids Day

Today is World Aids Day. It is a time to remember the people we've lost and a time to act to save the lives of the people we still can.

Far from being a "homosexual" disease, AIDS has ravaged the continent of Africa. Especially the Congo where hundreds of thousands of rapes occur every year. It is now prevalent in the United Kingdom where the HIV rate has doubled in the last ten years and currently over 90,000 people are living and dealing with HIV.

People living with HIV globally:
31.3 million adults
15.7 million women
2.1 million children under 15

What exactly is the difference between HIV and AIDS? AIDS is an immune deficiency that leaves a persons immune system so weakened they contract other sicknesses and diseases and die as a result of being unable to fight it off. HIV is the actual virus that can eventually lead to AIDS. A person can be HIV positive and not fall to AIDS. That is a lucky person. It is also sadly the minority.

DO WHAT YOU CAN TO HELP.

Mysteries of the Mind

The Human Brain is one of the most mysterious, wondrous and miraculous things in the known Universe.

In fact, our brain cells LOOK EXACTLY LIKE THE KNOWN UNIVERSE.

Here's a picture to prove it:

The human brain contains 100 billion brain cells called neurons. According to the picture above, it seems we all carry about 100 billion miniature Universe's inside each of own heads. "The Body is a Temple", "God is Within", "Use Your Brain" kind of all make sense now. Or as the 14th Buddha of Compassion, commonly known as the Dalai Lama, would say: "There is no need for temples, no need for complicated philosophies. My brain and my heart are my temples; my philosophy is kindness."

There are so many fascinating facts about the brain that we cannot encompass them all in this post.

Click here to see a list of the top 100 of them.

It has been reported that a Croatian teenager studying German at school fell into a coma (blood poisoning) and awoke 24 hours later unable to speak her native language at all and instead speaks only fluent German. 2 days previously she could barely manage "Hi. My name is" in German and now she communicates perfectly in it. In fact, doctors at the hospital had to bring in a translator to speak with her because everyone at the hospital speaks Croatian!

"Hospital director Dujomir Marasovic said: "You never know when recovering from such a trauma how the brain will react."

Psychiatric expert Dr Mijo Milas added: "In earlier times this would have been referred to as a miracle, we prefer to think that there must be a logical explanation – its just that we haven't found it yet."

This kind of thing has happened before and is called "Foreign Accent Syndrome." This has been documented in over 60 cases between 1941 and 2009. As recently as 2006 an English woman awoke from a coma with a distinctly Jamaican accent.

Again, another "version" of this phenomena is called Xenoglossy. This is where a person without any prior exposure to the foreign language in question wakes up and can speak it fluently. Typically, the languages spoken here are ancient Biblical ones, leading to speculation of reincarnation.

It is a myth that we only use 10% of our brains. In fact the brain represents 3% of our total body weight and yet consumes 20% of our body's energy. It is when we are resting that the 10% comes into play. No pun intended.

Typically, the average human uses every part of the brain at times for certain things.

What's not understood is how clusters of neurons from the diverse regions of the brain collaborate to form consciousness. The 100 billion neurons in the brain comprise only 10% of all brain matter with the other 90% percent of brain matter, called glial cells, encapsulating and supporting the neurons.

"Albert Einstein's brain possessed a greater number of glial cells for each neurone, suggesting his brain needed and used more energy. As a result it may have generated more processing ability. The job of glial cells is to provide support and protection for neurones."

Ancient brain surgery dates back to 3,000 BC with the Ancient Egyptians performing a procedure called trepanning, where a tiny hole is drilled into the head. This procedure is practiced today with groups of people swearing that it enhances brain performance. We think we need that like we need a hole in the head.

Michelangelo, the great artist and sculptor, painted on the Sistine Chapel a perfect replica of the human brain. You have all seen it and might not have known. It is by far his most famous fresco, known as the Hand of God:

You can see how he carefully "hid" the image for over 500 years! In plain sight.

Read more on the Human Brain

R.I.P - Leslie Nielsen

"Don't Call Me Shirley"

The End of an Era - GOODBYE SPECTRUM!

The memories! The games! The concerts!

Oh, Spectrum - we will miss you!

We wrote you a poem

The Spectrum

Broad Street Bullies
Beaming toothless with pride
Every punch, every penalty
Every hit on our side
The concourse was jammed
Packed tight with the crowd
Everyone crammed, scrammed
And always so loud
Orange and black
Purple and white
At the Spectrum hockey
Kicked ass every night
76ers – Champions of ‘83
The players taller than the trees
Concerts – loud music and smoke
People rallying and sneaking a toke
The Spectrum we’ll miss you
We bid you adieu
The Spectrum we’ll never forget
For the lifetime of memories
We owe you a debt
They are tearing you down
But they can’t take you forever
You’re part of our hometown
Now and always and ever

Death of a President

John Fitzgerald Kennedy was shot to death today in 1963. We personally have never forgiven Texas or the FBI/CIA scumbags that organized it.

WARNING: The following is extremely graphic!



Look how Jackie tries to flee the car after her husband's head is blown apart all over her. So sad.

Never forget these 2 things.

1) The Secret Service that were supposed to physically ride on the back of the car and run beside it using specifically installed handles attached to the car were intentionally CALLED OFF at the last minute.

The secret service guys were so pissed they kept waving their arms in the air - 3 times to be exact - in exasperation and confusion. Why were they being called off by their boss? Here's the video to prove it.




And 2) Right after JFK was assassinated the United States Treasury was plundered. The paper money that used to read "Payable to the Bearer on Demand" became a useless "Federal Reserve Note" and rumors abound to this day that Fort Knox was emptied out in one night.

Blackbeard the Pirate

Capture of the Pirate, Blackbeard, 1718, by Jean Ferris

292 years ago today, one of the world's most famous and feared sea pirates was put to death.

Edward Teach, a Brit who became known as Blackbeard, enhanced his already fearsome image with actual fuses he entwined into his hair and beard and lighting them on fire to look like a fucking lunatic...a fucking lunatic you don't mess with. He was described as "such a figure that imagination cannot form an idea of a fury from hell to look more frightful."

He was moderately successful as a pirate. He stole and attained treasure all over the Caribbean and also up and down the East Coast of the United States. Sometime in 1718 he and his cohorts blockaded the port city of Charleston and caused a major ruckus.

Ole' Eddy, or Blackbeard as he was then called was caught on 11/22/1718 and killed in a ferocious battle organized by the Governor of Virginia.

While most people assume treasure is always gold, silver and jewels, it was mostly sugar, cocoa, coffee and fine linens that he was most interested in attaining for trade. Let's see - coffee, chocolate, sugar and fine clothes - treasure enough for us! Especially in 1718. The only pirate to have officially been documented to have buried a treasure (and we're not sure it was gold either) was Captain Kidd.

Blackbeard's heavily armed and fortified ship, the Queen Anne's Revenge, was discovered in 1997. So far, over 15,000 artifacts have been recovered from it and are on display at the North Carolina Maritime Museum.

Are we leaving stuff out? Of course, one post cannot accommodate the life of the most famous pirate the world has ever seen!

READ MORE here

Blackbeard's flag for his ship The Queen Anne's Revenge.
A skeleton spears a heart while toasting The Devil!

the three dots look like a pirate map to us....

Excellent Daily Mail article

The Gettysburg Address

147 years ago today, Abraham Lincoln took the podium at Cemetary Hill, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania and delivered a 2 minute speech that was and continues to be the gold standard of political speeches.

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate—we can not consecrate—we can not hallow—this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

We think that is fucking brilliant!

Miscellaneous Civil War banter:
We are Yankees through and through, however we always have to give a true Rebel Yell for General James Longstreet - Long Live General Lee's workhorse!

From the movie Gettysburg regarding the discussion of evolution:
"You may believe you descended from an ape. I may believe I am descended from an ape, but I dare any man to go up to General Lee and tell him, HE is descended from an ape!"

Patience and Fortitude

These are the names of the two majestic lion statues that flank the front door of the New York City Library. One of the world's largest repository of books, the NYC Library is a modern marvel and second in this country only to the Library of Congress (which is the world's largest library).

Patience and Fortitude were sculpted from Tennessee pink marble and have been standing guard since the Library's opening dedication on May 23, 1911.

They are super-popular in New York and are themselves their own tourist attraction. The tradition of dressing them up for holidays and events has been discouraged in recent years in order to preserve them. The lions recently underwent a total renovation in 2004 and were scrubbed clean for the first time since the Library opened.

The lions are synonomous with the Library and were even made into the Library's official logo and trademarked.

Their original names were Leo Astor and Leo Lenox, after The New York Public Library founders John Jacob Astor (who died on the Titanic) and James Lenox. They were renamed Patience and Fortitude by Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia during the economic downturn of the 1930's. He so named them "for the qualities he felt New Yorkers would need to survive the economic depression." The names were golden and have never been changed since.

Library's Page on the Lions

There's a book about them!

Patience - guards the southside

Fortitude - the North

Goodbye Carlos

No Moya will we enjoy ya - :(

Former tennis #1 seed and French Open Champ Carlos Moya retired from the game yesterday.

Carlos hails from Mallorca (may-orca), that little island off the coast of Spain that also spawned the greatest tennis player in history - Rafael Nadal. In fact, Moya was Rafa's early training partner and fellow member of the winning Davis Cup team in 2004.

Moya won 20 ATP titles, including the 1998 French Open. He was also awesome in the Olympics. He has been plagued by injuries in recent years and has to retire.

We will miss him on the court. We loved watching him play. And of course, just watching him. In 1999 People magazine chose him as one of the World's 50 Most Handsome Men. We couldn't agree more.

#1

I'm Number One!!...Again!!!

Susan Boyle, the unknown Scott who moved the world to tears with her stunning performance on Britain's Got Talent, has made history!

Susan's new album, The Gift, went #1 in the U.K AND the U.S, following her debut album "I Dreamed a Dream" that also went #1 in the U.K and the U.S. Two consecutive #1 albums in the SAME year! She is the first female in history to have achieved this. Madonna, Mariah Carey or Lady Gaga have never done this or even come close.

"The only other acts to have achieved this in the history of music were The Monkees in 1967 and the Beatles in 1969, her record company said."

This is groundbreaking in SO MANY WAYS! The fact that no one has done this in 40 years is Amazing. The fact that she is the first woman in HISTORY to do so is Amazing. The fact that she is an untrained, non-professional is Amazing. She is Amazing.

Way to go!!

We love her story the most because she is talent. She is not some pre-packaged Britney Spears forced into our consciousness. A true rag to riches, pauper to princess story. We also love that she is 49 years old and not 16. Yes, that is a big F-U to Justin Bieber.

ICON of the YEAR!

Picture from Perez Hilton

It's The Dude!

Congrats to GQ for finally getting it right! Jeff Bridges has been our Icon for years.

Gentleman's Quarterly Magazine has also named Stephen Colbert as Patriot of the year, Scarlett Johanssen as Babe of the Year (sexist bastards) and Drake and James Franco also as Men of the Year.

Kudos to Franco who is blowing audiences away with his Oscar worthy performance in 127 Hours.

The Doc Wins Cy Young!

Congrats to Phillies pitcher Roy "Doc" Halladay for kicking ass this season.

He was awarded the Cy Young award, unanimously, for best NL pitcher.

"He thew a perfect game on May 29th, and led the league in wins (21), complete games (9), shutouts (4), innings (250.2) while issuing the fewest walks per nine innings (1.1) and leading the NL in strikeout-to-walk ratio (7.30). He was among the leaders in ERA (2.44, third) and strikeouts (219, second) as well. And of course, the threw a no-hitter in Game One of the NLDS."

He rocks!

The Penis Cemetary of Iran

Attention World Travelers! Looking for that next "hot" destination? The Hajj not for you? Well, look no further - we have got the place for you!

There's an ancient cemetery in Iran that is all the rage today. It's attracting a ton of attention for it's unusually shaped headstones. Penis shaped headstones, that is. And that's not all. Breast shaped stones are also present. The ancient dicks and titties are upsetting to some and blamed for the site remaining hidden from the world for so long.

However, what is repugnant to some is also a magnet for others. Visitors from all over the world are making it the next hottest travel destination. Located in a remote mountainous region of Iran, it is VERY difficult to get to. Penis shaped stone seekers are making a go of it though.

Khalid Nabi cemetery is hundreds of years old and home to over 600 of these headstones.

We can GUARANTEE that once the Japanese get wind of this that they'll be making their own pilgrimages to this "fertility" site and fucking all over the place! Look out Iran! You thought it was bad now...just wait.

NEWS ARTICLE - A must read!

If Dolphins Can Love Him...Can We Love Him Too?

You've probably seen our other piece on Vladmir Putin and while it looks as if we have a little "hero worship" going on with the guy we just have to ask if dolphins can love him, why can't we love him too?

CLICK HERE for a 24-picture expose on Vladmir with cute animals! We think #13 is our favorite. What a guy!

The Hajj

The Hajj 2010

The world's largest pilgrimage, The Hajj, is happening now as we speak in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. At least 2 million faithful Muslims annually converge on Mecca as part of The Hajj. The Hajj is a mandatory pilgrimage required at least once in a Muslims lifetime demonstrating the pilgrims solidarity with other Muslims and their subservience and submission to God's will.

The Hajj dates back to the time of Abraham and the ritual itself is thousands of old. There are many components to this event. One of them, is the "Stoning of the Devil" that is taking place today. This is where everyone takes their turn throwing rocks at a wall in a symbolic gesture of refuting Satan. How charming! The most well known task is the gathering at the Kabba, the center of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, with the faithful walking in counter-clockwise circles and pointing to the Black Stone, the cornerstone of the Kabba, as seen in the picture above.

The Black Stone is believed by modern scholars to be a meteorite, as traditions dictate that it "Fell from Heaven." The Muslims worship this stone and say it was cast from heaven to show Adam and Eve where to build an altar to God. The stone was lost during Noah's time. It's location was revealed by an angel to Abraham who set into the Kabba, where it has been worshipped to this day.

This tradition is remarkably similar to the ancient Egyptians who worshipped the "Ben-Ben" stone at Heliopolis for millenia. The Benben was also a "Stone from Heaven" and is thought to have been a meteorite. This Benben tradition gave rise to the ancient stories of the Phoenix - a miraculous being who could resurrect its dead self from flames and rise into a brand new entity.

It's all very fascinating - the core of ancient religions. The more you read and learn the more you question everything - The historical timeline, the events themselves and the very "cast and crew" of this play called Life on Earth.

Remembering Vivien Leigh

Vivien Leigh would've been 97 years old last November 5th.

Who could ever forget Blanche DuBois? Or Scarlett O'Hara? Those two roles won her two Best Actress Academy Awards. She was also a Tony Award winner for Best Broadway Actress.

Vivien Leigh was also super-controversial. She was married to Laurence Olivier and was apparently a bi-sexual, bi-polar, nymphomaniac and died, of all things, from tuberculosis. Crazy!

We think she was one of the most beautiful actresses to ever grace the Silver Screen and will always remember her waiting to be "kissed. Hard and often"!

Vivien with co-star Clark Gable, who she famously stated had "bad breath"

FREE AT LAST! FREE AT LAST!

Political prisoner Aung San Suu Kyi
HAS BEEN SET FREE!

Everyone stand up now and shout!

She has been held for YEARS by the Burmese military dictatorship in Rangoon. We want her to leave the country and be safe somewhere else but know that she will continue to stay in Myanmar and fight for her people's freedom as well.

She is now 65 years old, a Nobel Peace Prize WINNER and recipient of the 1990 Sakharov Prize. She is also just one of over two thousand two hundred political prisoners in Burma being held in over 43 prisons nationwide.

We miss Benazir Bhutto and hope she is smiling down in solidarity for Aung Kyi...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY NEIL YOUNG!

Rock and Roll's Greatest Songwriter and Performer was born today in 1945.

Happy Birthday Neil!

Although Harvest Moon and Heart of Gold are two of our all-time faves, today we are Rockin' in the FREE WORLD...

Veteran's Day

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest
appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."
- John Fitzgerald Kennedy

"This nation will remain the land of the free only
so long as it is the home of the brave."
- Elmer Davis

Dirge for Two Veterans

The last sunbeam
Lightly falls from the finish’d Sabbath,
On the pavement here—and there beyond, it is looking,
Down a new-made double grave.

Lo! the moon ascending!
Up from the east, the silvery round moon;
Beautiful over the house tops, ghastly phantom moon;
Immense and silent moon.

I see a sad procession,
And I hear the sound of coming full-key’d bugles;
All the channels of the city streets they’re flooding,
As with voices and with tears.

I hear the great drums pounding,
And the small drums steady whirring;
And every blow of the great convulsive drums,
Strikes me through and through.

For the son is brought with the father;
In the foremost ranks of the fierce assault they fell;
Two veterans, son and father, dropt together,
And the double grave awaits them.

Now nearer blow the bugles,
And the drums strike more convulsive;
And the day-light o’er the pavement quite has faded,
And the strong dead-march enwraps me.

In the eastern sky up-buoying,
The sorrowful vast phantom moves illumin’d;
(’Tis some mother’s large, transparent face,
In heaven brighter growing.)

O strong dead-march, you please me!
O moon immense, with your silvery face you soothe me!
O my soldiers twain! O my veterans, passing to burial!
What I have I also give you.

The moon gives you light,
And the bugles and the drums give you music;
And my heart, O my soldiers, my veterans,
My heart gives you love.

- from Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman(1900)

He's Done it AGAIN!

What we think he said:
"I told you people, I want my shit back!"

What he actually said:
"I'm going to fight.
I'm going to go and tell the world
that these countries have no right
to these antiquities,"
Dr. Hawass said in an interview.

The Last Great Pharaoh of Egypt has once again cried Thief! and has been heard.

The New York Metropolitan Museum of Art is sending back to Egypt 19 items that they had housed for over 62 years.

Items include "small figurines and jewelry, including a miniature bronze dog, a sphinx-shaped bracelet trinket and a necklace."

Way to go, Dr. H!

No one fucks with The Pharaoh and dares to think they can get away with it!

Dr. Hawass called the return "a wonderful gesture" and praised the Met for its "ethical behavior."

His repatriation campaign has resulted over the years in the return of more than 5,000 antiquities to Egypt, Dr. Hawass claims. The items he is seeking are intended to fill a new national museum in Cairo set for completion in 2013. The 935,000-square-foot Grand Egyptian Museum will cost an estimated $550 million, house more than 100,000 artifacts and will be "one of the flagship institutions in the world," the archaeologist said.

Dr. Hawass, the head of Egypt's Supreme Council for Antiquities, said he envisions the Rosetta Stone, a 196 B.C. text used to first decipher hieroglyphs, as the "natural centerpiece" for the new museum. He also seeks return of a Ramses II statue on display in Turin, Italy, and a statue depicting the architect of the Great Pyramid in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Do you hear that, World? He's coming for YOU!

News Article

WSJ News Article

SS Edmund Fitzgerald

On this day in 1975, one of the United States' most tragic maritime disasters occurred on Lake Superior.

The Supertanker Edmund Fitzgerald was lost at sea with all hands. 29 men died in what would be one of the most mysterious Great Lake shipwrecks of all time.

Lake Superior, known for its rough seas and terrible winter storms, claimed the Edmund Fitzgerald in 80 mile an hour winds and 25-foot high waves. The supertanker was not unlike the Titanic as far as the notion of "it's too big to be lost at sea". It sank fast, without sending out a single distress call. This wasn't 1875 but 1975 and the suddenness of the tragedy surprised everyone. The ship was equipped with state of the art everything...radar, sonar, communications. To this day not one body has been recovered.

The ship, discovered at the bottom of the lake a few days later, sits a silent tomb. Home forever for the crew of 29 that perished so suddenly and horribly that November night. The Son of the Late Great Jacques Cousteau, Jean-Michel, brought The Calypso to Lake Superior and were the first crew to use a submersible to dive to the ship, in 1980.

What made the wreck so mysterious was the circumstances of how it sank so fast without sending a distress call. Not one SOS. It was so weird that people came up with every theory under the Sun including Alien Abduction.

It has been determined in the intervening years that the hatches were insufficiently closed and that water poured through them, compromising the ship. One thing led to another and within minutes, all were gone. The Captain, Ernest M McSorley, was a veteran seaman. It probably surprised the hell out of him, too.

In 1995 the beautiful golden Bell, engraved with the ships name, was brought to the surface. It is now housed reverently at The Great Lakes Shipwreck museum.

The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum is home to an entire exhibit for the Fitz. Be forewarned - "The Wreck of Edmund Fitzgerald" is on a loop. (God Bless Gordon Lightfoot!) If you can't handle the song...wear earplugs. But go. Whitefish Point, Michigan is as beautiful and wild a place in all of North America and it's AWESOME. We don't even have words to describe accurately the majestic views of Lake Superior.

The museum is hosting it's annual Edmund Fitzgerald tribute later today that always concludes with a prayer and a ringing of the original Bell 29 times, once for each man lost.

For those of you old enough to have FINALLY gotten the Gordon Lightfoot tribute song out of you head...sorry... Here it comes again. It's a friggin classic!

The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy.

With a load of iron ore - 26,000 tons more
Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty
That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
When the gales of November came early

The ship was the pride of the American side
Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin
As the big freighters go it was bigger than most
With a crew and the Captain well seasoned.

Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
When they left fully loaded for Cleveland
And later that night when the ships bell rang
Could it be the North Wind they'd been feeling.

The wind in the wires made a tattletale sound
And a wave broke over the railing
And every man knew, as the Captain did, too,
T'was the witch of November come stealing.

The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
When the gales of November came slashing
When afternoon came it was freezing rain
In the face of a hurricane West Wind

When supper time came the old cook came on deck
Saying fellows it's too rough to feed ya
At 7PM a main hatchway caved in
He said fellas it's been good to know ya.

The Captain wired in he had water coming in
And the good ship and crew was in peril
And later that night when his lights went out of sight
Came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

Does anyone know where the love of God goes
When the waves turn the minutes to hours
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
If they'd put fifteen more miles behind her.

They might have split up or they might have capsized
They may have broke deep and took water
And all that remains is the faces and the names
Of the wives and the sons and the daughters.

Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings
In the ruins of her ice water mansion
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams,
The islands and bays are for sportsmen.

And farther below Lake Ontario
Takes in what Lake Erie can send her
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
With the gales of November remembered.

In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed
In the Maritime Sailors' Cathedral
The church bell chimed, 'til it rang 29 times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.

The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
Superior, they say, never gives up her dead
When the gales of November come early.


© 1976 Moose Music, Inc.

Wiki article on the Edmund Fitzgerald

UPDATE: Travel Channel's new show "Mysteries of the Museum" just filmed a show at The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum and Discovery Channel's "Ghost Lab" also filmed an episode there as well! We were onto it YEARS ago but kudos to the Museum for finally getting some good PR!

Federal Bureau of Intimidation

The Feds better back off, nice and slow.

What happened to cyclist Yaroslav Popovych in late October was completely uncalled for.

One of our favorite cyclists was totally ambushed and harassed by UNNAMED SPECIAL AGENTS when one of the agents just went wonky and cornered Popo's car to serve him a subpoena in the ongoing Lance Armstrong FBI witchhunt.

Witnesses say that poor Popo, in the US to help Lance raise money for the Livestrong Foundation, spent the day with Lance riding and signing autographs for fans at an all day event when all of a sudden, a man charged up to poor Yaroslav demanding something. Who knows? Popo can't even speak English! The other Radio Shack riders were asking what is going on and Popo tried to leave the scene. That's when the Situation turned into a Situation.

Getting into an unmarked SUV, the Special Agent followed the cyclists rental car, cut them off and abruptly and without identification served Yaroslav a subpoena while threatening him to not leave the country or he'd be arrested. Yaroslav must've thought he was back at home...in the USSR.

Popovych's attorney had this to say:

Wednesday Yaroslav Popovych testified for approximately 90 minutes before the Lance Armstrong grand jury. Ken Miller, Popovych's attorney, said he didn't understand why the government would serve the Ukranian rider in Austin when he was only supposed to be in the country for four days, only to make him wait for almost two weeks.

"He arrived on October 21st, was served on the 22nd. And then he had to come out for a grand jury appearance on November 3rd," said Miller. "And he doesn't know anything about what they're investigating."

We just have to say...What the fuck? Are you serious? This is how they are getting the cycling community to testify against Lance Armstrong? Is this really happening in this country? We're never going to sign up for a Tea Party but we're ready for the Revolution, baby!

BRING IT!

HuffPost Article

All Those DAYS OF OUR LIVES

"Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives."

The long-running NBC soap opera Days of Our Lives celebrated their 45th year yesterday by "breaking the fourth wall" at the end of the show with a little "hello" from cast member Suzanne Rogers.

“Today, we’re celebrating 45 years of Days of Our Lives. Our families have been through a lot together, and today we especially want to thank you for being with us through it all and to let you know that we are looking forward to many more years of all of us sharing…the Days of Our Lives."

Yes, we've been through ALOT! From the drug dealing "days" of Snake, the many abductions of Marlena, the many deaths of John Black, The never-ending saga of Bo and Hope, The Hortons, The Bradys, THE EVIL AND AWESOME STEFANO DiMERA, the daunting Victor Kiriakis, Demonic possessions, The Paris Underground, Paternity Questions, Live Burials, Deaths, Weddings, Births and The This-That and Every-Other-Thing of a Daily Soap Opera.

A BIG HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO DAYS. We don't know what we'd do without ya! And we won't have to wonder. As of yesterday, November 8th, 2010, the 45th anniversary of the show, Days was renewed for another 2 years with a 3rd year option! The show has survived and thrived where many others have fallen by the wayside.


EW's KEN CORDAY Interview!

Will John and Marlena return to Salem?

Will Stefano discover he has yet another biological love child?

Will the evil Vivian succeed in destroying Maggie?

Will Melanie find out that Phillip has been lying about his "family business"?

Will everyone find out that it was Sammi who shot EJ?

Will Kate's nostrils continue to flare for another 23 seasons?

STAY TUNED!

Official Days page at NBC.Com
- Cast lists, episode guides, spoilers and more!

Remember, Remember the 5th of November!

It's the only night of the year where we openly celebrate Treason!

Remember, remember, the 5th of November
The Gunpowder Treason and plot;
I know of no reason why Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot.

Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes,
'Twas his intent.
To blow up the King and the Parliament.
Three score barrels of powder below.
Poor old England to overthrow.
By God's providence he was catch'd,
With a dark lantern and burning match

Holloa boys, Holloa boys, let the bells ring
Holloa boys, Holloa boys, God save the King!

Hip hip Hoorah !
Hip hip Hoorah !

A penny loaf to feed ol'Pope,
A farthing cheese to choke him.
A pint of beer to rinse it down,
A faggot of sticks to burn him.

Burn him in a tub of tar,'
Burn him like a blazing star.
Burn his body from his head,
Then we'll say: ol'Pope is dead.


Wow! We just don't create poetry like this anymore, do we?

To properly celebrate Guy Fawkes Day rent the movie V for Vendetta, prepare a nice bonfire and firework celebration for tonight with an effigy of 'ole Guy to burn, and oh yeah, don't forget to plot to overthrow your government of choice!

King Tutankhamun

This mask is ELECTROPLATED GOLD -
Yes, Electricity was used in creating this mask!

On November 4th 1922, Howard Carter, financed by Lord Carnarvon, discovered the Tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun, known as King Tut.

What made this discovery astounding was that it was a virtually untouched tomb - it was barely looted - and it contained priceless treasures.

More Info

An inside look - scenes depicting the first hour of the
Pharaoh's journey into the afterlife