Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Fuck the extremist election deniers. What’s money for if not for keeping them out of office?

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

Is it irresponsible to speculate? It is irresponsible not to.

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

Pessimism assures that nothing of any importance will change.

Let us savor the impending downfall of lawless scoundrels who richly deserve the trouble barreling their way.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

He really is that stupid.

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

A sufficient plurality of insane, greedy people can tank any democratic system ever devised, apparently.

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. let’s win this.

🎶 Those boots were made for mockin’ 🎵

A last alliance of elves and men. also pet photos.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

You don’t get to peddle hatred on saturday and offer condolences on sunday.

Roe isn’t about choice, it’s about freedom.

Balloon Juice has never been a refuge for the linguistically delicate.

We are aware of all internet traditions.

Come on, media. you have one job. start doing it.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

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Reader Interactions

201Comments

  5. 5.

    Amir Khalid

    I’m worried about what’s been disclosed so far concerning the Superman movie. Are they abandoning the John Williams theme music? Where the hell are Supes’ red underpants? Is Russell Crowe going to sing as Jor-El?

  6. 6.

    Corner Stone

    Considering I’ve worked almost 40 hours over the last two days, I think I’ll keep it vodka on the Lord’s Day.

  7. 7.

    Higgs Boson's Mate

    I fervently pray that the FSM will cause every newsie who breathlessly misreported the events following the Boston bombing to spontaneously combust.

  8. 8.

    Schlemizel

    . . . Exodus Ch. 31, 35-38. Notably, the Shabbat restrictions are reiterated during this discussion (Ex. 31:13), thus we can infer that the work of creating the sanctuary had to be stopped for Shabbat. From this, the rabbis concluded that the work prohibited on Shabbat is the same as the work of creating the sanctuary. They found 39 categories of forbidden acts, all of which are types of work that were needed to build the sanctuary:

    1. Sowing
    2. Plowing
    3. Reaping
    4. Binding sheaves
    5. Threshing
    6. Winnowing
    7. Selecting
    8. Grinding
    9. Sifting
    10. Kneading
    11. Baking
    12. Shearing wool
    13. Washing wool
    14. Beating wool
    15. Dyeing wool
    16. Spinning
    17. Weaving
    18. Making two loops
    19. Weaving two threads
    20. Separating two threads
    21. Tying
    22. Untying
    23. Sewing two stitches
    24. Tearing
    25. Trapping
    26. Slaughtering
    27. Flaying
    28. Salting meat
    29. Curing hide
    30. Scraping hide
    31. Cutting hide up
    32. Writing two letters
    33. Erasing two letters
    34. Building
    35. Tearing a building down
    36. Extinguishing a fire
    37. Kindling a fire
    38. Hitting with a hammer
    39. Taking an object from the private domain to the public, or transporting an object in the public domain.

    All of these tasks are prohibited, as well as any task that operates by the same principle or has the same purpose.

  9. 9.

    LanceThruster

    Please keep it holy on the Lord’s Day

    [takes a quick glance at tighty-whiteys] Check!

  10. 10.

    MomSense

    Ok Governor LePage is now a member of the Agenda 21 conspiracy club. This is after telling us that one of the UMAINE wind turbines actually has a little electric motor so that they can fool visitors into thinking that it is actually powered by wind. Seriously, he is pointing at windmills.

    http://www.pressherald.com/politics/LePage-joins-author-in-blasting-limits-on-property-rights.html

    And for this video you will need a whole roll of tinfoil–don’t stop with the hat–cover your entire body. You may need to purchase the extra-wide commercial variety tinfoil.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VcqixNW5D8&feature=youtu.be

  14. 14.

    eemom

    We were driving home from his lax game yesterday when my son said, “Is that toxic?” He was referring to this bumper sticker on an SUV in front of us. A very unusual thing to see on a family-centric vehicle here in the prissy-ass NoVA ‘burbs.

  15. 15.

    Corner Stone

    @Higgs Boson’s Mate:

    I fervently pray that the FSM will cause every newsie who breathlessly misreported the events following the Boston bombing to spontaneously combust.

    In that case I would hope they’re all gathered in some elite hipster specialty tea cafe or similar so we cordon it off as it burns and no one else is in danger.
    I would hate for them to be somewhere useful like a museum or art gallery when they started combusting.

    But now that I think about it, if they were in a movie theater could we yell Fire! Fire! and that be ok? Or would we be locked away without being read our Miranda rights for up to 48 hours?

  18. 18.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    Gonna be unambitious today. Ambition during the work week cost me an embarrassing/expensive machine failure/repair.
    It was a crummy week that didn’t end until midnight Friday.
    Luckily I was too busy to follow the blow-by-blow 24X7 coverage of Boston. Maybe I’m a bad American for not dropping everything to worship at the altar of nonstop news but I’m not less well informed than those who did.

  19. 19.

    Schlemizel

    @Villago Delenda Est:

    I had Jewish neighbors & the whole thing confused the hell out of me. A lot of stuff got ruled in or out through some pretty arcane lawyering amongst Rabbis. They always had some (odd to me anyway) interpretations as to if an act fell into a prohibited area.

  20. 20.

    Schlemizel

    Friend just posted on FB the the big orange boner is going into rehab. WHile that might be true I can’t confirm it through the great gazoogle. Anyone else got a better answer?

  21. 21.

    patrick II

    Antonin Scalia expresses his good fortune at being on the supreme court where he can express his dickishness without being fired.

  22. 22.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Schlemizel:

    The safest course is probably to just lay like a lump in your bed all day and do absolutely nothing.

    “I’m sorry, but your heart is pumping. That’s another 40 years in the wilderness, scumbag!”

  23. 23.

    Amir Khalid

    @Chris:
    It’s the red underpants that I’m most worried about. Leaving them off is a radical change to the iconic costume. But yeah, I’d also be upset if I saw a Supes movie without the John Williams theme.

  24. 24.

    Suffern ACE

    So someone stole first last night on the Cubs. If it weren’t the Cubs, I’d assume the fifth or sixth seal had been broken.

  25. 25.

    Corner Stone

    @Schlemizel:

    A lot of stuff got ruled in or out through some pretty arcane lawyering amongst Rabbis. They always had some (odd to me anyway) interpretations as to if an act fell into a prohibited area.

    What if you just absolutely, really had to make three loops? I mean, there was just no way around it, two loops would.not.do.it.
    What then?

  27. 27.

    ruemara

    @Schlemizel: I don’t see raiding in there, so Azeroth and away!

    I’m working on recipes for the latest article I have to deliver. Unfortunately, I’m on a diet, this is gonna be annoying. Plus side, I’m already up a very large quantity of Raspberry Chipotle sauce. Now I just have to whip up the raspberry whipped cream filling for these here donuts. And then I need to give them all away.

  28. 28.

    Schlemizel

    @Corner Stone:

    Given my admittedly limited experience I would say you get two family members with you and each of you makes one loop.

    They reminded me a lot of my Catholic childhood friends who made up all kinds of reasons why it was OK to have meat this one time on a Friday

  30. 30.

    Corner Stone

    @Suffern ACE:

    So someone stole first last night on the Cubs. If it weren’t the Cubs, I’d assume the fifth or sixth seal had been broken.

    That is rather unseemly, I’ll grant that.
    But 3 of the last 5 starters for the Astros have been pulled without making it out of the 1st inning and last night the Cleveland Freakin’ Indians scored 14 runs in the first two innings.

  32. 32.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @ruemara:

    I’m supposed to be ginning up ideas for magazine articles today. I like this stuff but the stringent constraints of materials and format make it really difficult to come up with anything worthwhile.
    I guess this is where the really creative succeed and tinkerers like me fail.

  34. 34.

    Corner Stone

    @Ultraviolet Thunder:

    Gonna be unambitious today. Ambition during the work week cost me an embarrassing/expensive machine failure/repair.

    “It’s ok, kids, you tried your best and you failed. The lesson is: never try.”

  37. 37.

    Suffern ACE

    @Schlemizel: no place I’ve seen. If he does, well then, finally. If he does, can we put the msm through the wringer for pretending not to notice?

  38. 38.

    scav

    Господи и владико животѹ моемѹ, духъ оунынїѧ, небре жεнїѧ, срεбролюбїѧ и празднословїѧ ѿжεни ѿ мεнε.

    O Lord and Master of my life, take from me the spirit of sloth, despondency, lust for power and idle talk.

    Old Savonic wormed its way into conversations this week. Along with St. Ephraim the Syrian. Seems apposite.

  40. 40.

    Baud

    @scav:

    take from me the spirit of sloth, despondency, lust for power and idle talk.

    But those are all of my favorite things.

  43. 43.

    Corner Stone

    So mistermix, I’m assuming Cole used the recent Reddit inspired crash as a diversion to finally murder the Recent Comments sidebar, which he’s always hated and felt inferior to?

  44. 44.

    Anoniminous

    Gonna release my dancin’ feet,
    headin’ down to Bourbon Street

    Tappity tappity-tap

  46. 46.

    Gravenstone

    @Suffern ACE: The only reason it was considered a “steal” is because the second base umpire was busy calling Braun out at second and completely missed the fact that Segura had been tagged out as well (twice, in fact).

    I knew this was going to be a more painful than normal season for the Cubs, but this year is just one odd occurrence after another. A few games ago, Cubs pitchers combined for 2 passed balls and 6 wild pitches (5 in a single inning). If Sveum hasn’t had himself committed to a mental hospital before the All Star break, I’ll be stunned.

  47. 47.

    Suffern ACE

    @Schlemizel: ok. Players on first and second, player on second attempts to steal third, but is in a run down, makes it back to second but player from first has advanced. The player standing on second is out for being on base that hadn’t been vacated…then it gets too confusing…

  49. 49.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @ruemara:
    Okay, thanks. DIY projects that you can make with only parts from Radio Shack. They have to require only hand tools, take up no more than 5 pages and 1,500 words and be cool and useful.

    15 years ago this would have been a breeze, but Radio Shack has gone from being a store full of electronic components to a store full of consumer electronics and a cabinet of parts.
    But we still love them.

  51. 51.

    Davis X. Machina

    @MomSense: LePage has reached the conclusion that he cannot be re-elected, or cannot be re-elected without the same sort of 5-candidate, fragmented field that put him in in the first place.

  52. 52.

    Morzer

    @Baud:

    I am so tempted to create a lecherous and gluttonous version of My Favourite Things right now. I don’t remember any prohibitions involving parodies of ghastly musicals and the Sabbath.

  53. 53.

    scav

    @Corner Stone: with foreknowledge, make the first loop early and leave it lying about ready for the legitimate two later would be an easy one. Now I’m Fascinated trying to think of accidental ways of making loops — no, surely, I was just spinning around doing cartwheels, holding this rope, honestly.

  55. 55.

    Morzer

    @scav:

    A gang of forced loopers burst into my humble shack and brutally compelled me to double loop against my will. No, sir, I didn’t know any of them and none of them were my wife and children wearing false beards and speaking in suspiciously deep voices.

  57. 57.

    scav

    @Baud: Apparently Lent has got to mean something to some odd people. personally, I’ve given up Madonna albums every year for it and Lent’s been running for decades.

  60. 60.

    Smiling Mortician

    @eemom: Don’t think I’d include the yin-yang symbol, but perhaps they couldn’t find a circular symbol for monotheistic nutbucketism (maybe a halo? prayer beads?)

  61. 61.

    SFAW

    @Geoduck:

    I notice that the “article” was undated, and the pic of Orange Junius had him suspiciously young-looking. (Relatively, of course.) Did you check the kerning? I’m thinking it was possibly Photoshopped (or whatever).

  63. 63.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @Davis X. Machina:

    The website has a lot of ‘internet only’ components, including a puzzlingly large array of TV repair components. People repair TVs? Who knew.

    I have Radio Shack catalogs dating back to the ’60s. In those days you could build your own Evil Genius Mastermind Secret Lab in a Volcano with nothing but stuff from Radio Shack.

    My last Radio Shack/MAKE Magazine article comes out this week in print. The video already has over 75K views on YouTube. That’s peanuts compared to pop stars but for DIY it’s stardom.

  64. 64.

    Suffern ACE

    @Gravenstone: it was quite literally a stolen base. The police are still looking for the perps.

    Yeah. It involved a bad call, but it had to be scored as a steal because there was nothing in the 23 ways a player can reach first base that made any better sense. The storekeepers needed something to put there. Segura stole second, then stole first, then was thrown out trying to steal second again later that inning.

  66. 66.

    SFAW

    @Ultraviolet Thunder:

    Does it have to be a completely-new idea? Or can it be something already there, but you can “translate” it into DIY-ness? Have you considered looking through “MAKE” magazine?

    [Of course, now you’ll probably tell me that “MAKE” is for whom you are writing this.]

    ETA: So, of course, while I was typing this, you posted your “MAKE” comment. Quelle surprise!

  67. 67.

    Corner Stone

    @Morzer:

    I am so tempted to create a lecherous and gluttonous version of My Favourite Things right now. I don’t remember any prohibitions involving parodies of ghastly musicals and the Sabbath.

    Could you have it set in the time period of the Old South?

  70. 70.

    Corner Stone

    @Ultraviolet Thunder:

    The website has a lot of ‘internet only’ components, including a puzzlingly large array of TV repair components. People repair TVs? Who knew.

    This from a guy who repairs phonographs from like the ’20s or some other time I am unfamiliar with?

  72. 72.

    Corner Stone

    @scav:

    with foreknowledge, make the first loop early and leave it lying about ready for the legitimate two later would be an easy one.

    See, but that’s just it. Isn’t there a scripture prohibiting the wasteful looping? “Loop not in haste, lest the loopless suffer” or something like that?
    I just wouldn’t feel right about pre-looping. What if I then didn’t need the loop? Would I have to invent some use for it?
    It all feels so dirty, but not in the good way. Pass me some of that Old Savonic, willya?

  73. 73.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @Corner Stone:

    Good point. Record players have been a mature tech for 40 years. Those from the ’60s are still worth repairing and having.
    Modern TVs, by the time they fail are obsolete. You can buy a better one for a fraction of the cost of the failed one, and only a little more than the repair cost. So I’m surprised that people actually try to fix them.
    But maybe that’s why Radio Shack still has TV repair parts in stock; people stopped buying them and they’re dead stock.

  79. 79.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @Corner Stone:

    I have one idea I’ve been banging on for a year or so: a mono headphone amplifier that runs on batteries and introduces harmonic distortion like an old tube radio. I could do it with tubes but Radio Shack stopped selling them years ago. A FET will work.
    maybe I’ll dust that off and give it a listen.

  81. 81.

    scav

    @Corner Stone: Here. Careful, it’s a bit wet in here. Wouldn’t want to slip on the rope and introduce any additional wasteful kinks . . . waaaiiit a minute, wasn’t kinkiness entirely legitimate on this day?. @Yutsano! ?

  85. 85.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    I live in a Jewish neighborhood. This is hard on the dog because his house sits between the people and the synagogues. All those pedestrians blatantly just walking right past his house and they NEED BARKING AT RIGHT NOW!!!

  88. 88.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @Corner Stone:

    More like a smoothing of the sound so some of the glaring harshness of digital audio is masked. I’d roll off the treble and boost the bass a little as well as adding about 5% – 10% harmonics. Fatten it and warm it up. It sounds good to me. But I still play records through speakers in a listening room so what do I know?

  89. 89.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @NotMax:

    True. They were well engineered and performed very well. many are still in use. They also cost a great deal even as kits.

    I have a ton of Heath stuff. They made some of the best American tube audio ever.

  90. 90.

    ruemara

    @Ultraviolet Thunder: Ewwww, RS? Only tech store I can walk into and never get a single bit of service. How cool would it have to be vs how useful? One thing I’d like to make is a good looking lightsaber replica. I’ve even considered how I could build a replica of a gaming weapon, which would require knowing how to use motors, add wiring into a mace handle and embedding LEDs. And I’ve wondered if I could build a better Roomba.

  92. 92.

    NotMax

    @Ultraviolet Thunder

    Personal anecdote you might find passingly amusing about how sometimes the dice just roll the right way on the low-end stuff:

    Sometime around 1972, bought (used) a 25-inch b&w Muntz TV for $20. That set is in my folks’ house, and still working.

  93. 93.

    lamh35

    @Amir Khalid: @Chris:

    ok, don’t hate me, but I didn’t really notice that the red undies were missing. I admit, I was too fixated on the guys physique.

    Is it bad that I don’t mind it. The big S on the chest is still there and I’d bet that the majority of the people will not notice either.

    I like when comicbook heroes “evolve” with the times. It happens in the page of the comics alot so I don’t mind when it does in the movies as long as it stays true to the “form” and feeling of the original. The last Superman movie while I didn’t hate it like some did, stayed true to the red bloomers, and yet people hated it. At the very least this one from the trailer seems like it will be loads better and in the hands of producers like Chris Nolan (didn’t he change the iconic “suit” for Batman in Dark Knight) I think this one will be loads better.

    Now having said that, I totally agree about the theme song. Not having the original would be tantamount to treason or sacrilege in my book.

  95. 95.

    Ben Franklin

    Dowd is on a roll, and I don’t mean sushi…http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/21/opinion/sunday/dowd-president-obama-is-no-bully-in-the-pulpit.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

    President Obama has watched the blood-dimmed tide drowning the ceremony of innocence, as Yeats wrote, and he has learned how to emotionally connect with Americans in searing moments, as he did from the White House late Friday night after the second bombing suspect was apprehended in Boston.

    Unfortunately, he still has not learned how to govern.

  96. 96.

    ricky

    Thousands of police have used their Homeland Security grant funded training, equipment, and nifty cammo uniforms to search the homes of Watertown, Mass because one guy was at large that they suspected caused explosions which led to four killed and over a hundred wounded.

    Now can we expect a similar exercise involving the search of the hundreds of fertilizers facilities after one exploded killing over three times as many, wounded about the same number, and left hundreds homeless and without schools. We know there are hundreds. We know they harbor the same weapons. Heck, we even have their addresses and they are unlikely to fire back, run, or hide in a boat.

  97. 97.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @ruemara:

    People make lightsabers but it requires a metal lathe. I’m a machinist and even I wouldn’t try it. Very tricky. I think the original was actually the handle of a pro photography flash device.

    RPGame weapons can be mocked up with styro, a hotwire cutter and paint. I don’t kow the motor requirements because I’m not familiar with the games.

    The Roomba’s problem is power, as in about 2 orders of magnitude too little. That’s a tech limitation that you won’t be able to get around to improve it. But if you have a special application there are tons of ‘easy’ robots that can be adapted for cleaning. Design it to find a patch of sunlight during the day and recharge via solar cells. Like a cat.

  99. 99.

    trollhattan

    @scav:

    Made me look! “It would have been sufficient” fits perfectly, like a pair of bespoke Sully trousers. I also learned many new things, including this.

    Jews in Afghanistan and Iran hit each other over the head with green onions during the refrain beginning with the ninth stanza (Even if you had supplied our needs in the desert for 40 years but not provided us with manna). This may be due to a passage in Numbers 11:5-6, where the Israelites see manna and recall Egypt. “We remember the fish that we used to eat in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions and the garlic. Now our gullets are shriveled. There is nothing at all. Nothing but this manna to look at.” It is thought that by beating each other with the onions they taught themselves not to yearn for Egypt or to forget Egyptian Bondage.

    Did the broccoli mandate begin as the green onion mandate?

  100. 100.

    scav

    @Ultraviolet Thunder: “Design it to find a patch of sunlight during the day and recharge via solar cells. Like a cat.” And then run about like a lunatic, jumping on things all night. On the upside, high shelves and the tops of drapes will finally get dusted.

  102. 102.

    Ben Franklin

    I blame Putin. Hopefully this link works.http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fvdagestan.info%2F

    Statement in connection with the events in Boston (USA)

    “After the events in Boston (USA) in the press reported that one of the brothers Tsarnaevyh in 2012 for 6 months in Dagestan. On this basis the speculative assumption that he may have been associated with the Mujahideen of the Caucasus Emirate, in particular, the Mujahideen of Dagestan.

    Vilayat Dagestan command in this regard indicates that the Caucasian Mujahideen are not fighting with the United States of America. We are at war with Russia, which is not only responsible for the occupation of the Caucasus, but also for the heinous crimes against Muslims.

    Also, remember that even in respect of an enemy state Russia, which is fighting the Caucasus Emirate Emir valid order Doku Umarov, which prohibits strikes on civilian targets.

    In this regard, the command of the Mujahideen Vilayat Dagestan calls primarily American media to stop speculating and promote Russian propaganda.

    I

    f the U.S. government is really interested in establishing the true organizers of explosions in Boston, and are not complicit in Russian play, then they should focus on involvement in the events occurring Russian special services.’

  107. 107.

    Roger Moore

    @lamh35:

    (didn’t he change the iconic “suit” for Batman in Dark Knight)

    Batman’s exact look has never been as clearly fixed as Superman’s. Some of the basics have remained constant- the big cape, long-eared cowl, bat emblem on the chest, utility belt, boots, and gloves- but there’s considerable flexibility in the exact look. For example, the size of the bat emblem on his chest changes, as does whether it’s just a bat or if it’s a bat in an oval. Nolan stuck within the range of looks that other interpretations of Batman had already established.

    I think that part of the reason for the greater flexibility of Batman’s look is that his costume is supposed to be functional, so it has to change as circumstances dictate. For example, he’s always worn some kind of armor on his torso- the bat emblem doubles as a target to draw gunfire toward his armor- but the details have changed with armor technology. He’s also gone with special costumes for particular circumstance- under water, extra armor, etc.- that match the basic pattern but vary in the details. Superman, whose costume is just an outfit rather than a source of any of his abilities, has a much stronger tendency to stick with the tried and true.

  109. 109.

    Hill Dweller

    @FlipYrWhig: In her article, mean girl wannabe admits the House was never going to hold a vote on the legislation, but still concludes it is Obama’s fault.

    I’m so tired of the Village absolving Republicans of any blame for their behavior.

  110. 110.

    Amir Khalid

    From the Sunday matches in the English Premier League, it’s clear there’s no one quite like Luis Suarez. He scored the last-second equalising goal that saved a point at home for Liverpool against Chelsea. He also bit a Chelsea player on the arm — a straight red card, had the referee seen it. LFC supporters are calling his persistent violent conduct a stain on the club’s good name, and some want him sold in the close season.

  113. 113.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @scav:

    Another task for RoombaKitty!

    This is the kind of robot we need: gets under your feet when you’re walking, idles around all day snoozing, noisily chases imaginary things all night, wants to go outside/inside/outside/inside, Kills stuff and presents you the bloody corpse.

    If the domestic cat didn’t already exist we would have to invent it for our lives to be complete.

  114. 114.

    Ben Franklin

    @Hill Dweller:

    I’m so tired of the Village absolving Republicans of any blame for their behavior

    They’re like school bullies pushing around a defenseless kid.

  115. 115.

    lamh35

    @Roger Moore: ok, you went into more depth than I expected…lol. Thanks for that though (admittedly, I haven’t seen much of the dark knight series aside from stills…soory)

    As to Superman, you are right, the suit def has nothing to do with his abilities, so in that case, it would seem that I like that the suit would evolve over time.

    I think the thing to remember is that the reboots always are meant for present consumption. and a “Superman” born within this generation would NOT be wearing sky blue tights and red bloomers. I think most movie goers understand that and who are not avid comic-bookers will not think twice.

    As we know comic book fans are way more intense about these things than the avid movie goer. Even I have my moments, I couldn’t and still can’t believe they cast Halle Berry as Storm for the X-Men movies. I literally rolled my eyes whenever she came on the screen. Yet, I’ve never have a problem with Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, even though he way too tall, but again, I was probably too busy looking at his physique like I am with the Superman guy…lol

  116. 116.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @NotMax:

    The embossed bat-nipples in one of the movies were a bridge too far

    George Clooney, of all improbably people. He claimed to have killed the franchise. Took a major reboot to get it back on its feet.

  119. 119.

    Suffern ACE

    @Ben Franklin: try again. Putin does not need US support for his caucuses problem, and would probably prefer that we not have reason to start getting concerned with that. You would be better off arguing that the FBI set this off to avoid sequester cuts. More people would believe that.

  120. 120.

    Roger Moore

    @Ultraviolet Thunder:

    This is the kind of robot we need: gets under your feet when you’re walking, idles around all day snoozing, noisily chases imaginary things all night, wants to go outside/inside/outside/inside, Kills stuff and presents you the bloody corpse.

    You forgot about knocking stuff off shelves, attacking moving things on the TV, sitting in your spot the moment you get up, walking across your keyboard or newspaper as you’re trying to use it, and throwing up in inappropriate place. Of course, cats do have some desirable features, like curling up in your lap and acting as a fuzzy hot water bottle.

  121. 121.

    Chris

    @lamh35:

    Oh, I’m with you. I actually don’t care about the red underwear, just the music. (Sorry AK!)

    It’s not my most anticipated superhero movie of the summer, but it’s definitely the one I’m most curious about.

  122. 122.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @NotMax:

    Looks good but if it won’t gack up a hairball in front of guests it’s not realistic enough for me.

    ETA: just kidding here. I adore cats and there are at least 14 in my immediate family. My wife’s allergies wil not permit us to enjoy one, though.

  127. 127.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    Semiserious note; domestic felines are already a human invention. We fashioned them through intentional selection from the raw material of wild felines.
    They’re already far more complex than any machine and it would take manymany supercomputers to equal the power of a cat’s brain. Plus they seek their own food, protect themselves, self-replicate and can learn. Those tasks are far too sophisticated for any robot.

  129. 129.

    Amir Khalid

    @Ultraviolet Thunder:
    It wasn’t George’s fault, it was the studio’s. The studio went all toy-commercial with Batman & Robin, and the nippled Batsuit was part of that silliness. Plus by then they’d signed Joel Schumacher as director.

  131. 131.

    Full Metal Wingnut

    I can almost guarantee that the bomber doesn’t get a plea bargain. The only deal he gets is death penalty off the table. The case is a career maker, no prosecutor is going to offer a plea.

  132. 132.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @Yutsano:

    And this can be programmed into a robot but the results can get messy.

    Yeah, let’s not do that. I used to be a programmer and I don’t trust anything with code in it to make more of itself.

  133. 133.

    MikeJ

    @lamh35: So many firebaggers are pissed off the cops didn’t kill him because they told us that’s what the fascist thugs would do.

  134. 134.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @Amir Khalid:

    It wasn’t George’s fault, it was the studio’s. The studio went all toy-commercial with Batman & Robin, and the nippled Batsuit was part of that silliness. Plus by then they’d signed Joel Schumacher as director.

    Not to mention the future Governator as a villain. It was a weird flick but we enjoyed it.

  135. 135.

    Ben Franklin

    @lamh35:

    Did you read, or hear about how many rounds were fired into the boat.

    From what I saw (constant muzzle flashes and reports) it seemed like 10x as many as they fired into the newspaper girl’s car while aiming for Dorner.

  136. 136.

    Corner Stone

    @Ultraviolet Thunder:

    Plus they seek their own food, protect themselves, self-replicate and can learn. Those tasks are far too sophisticated for any robot.

    Listen, I’m not asking for much. I just want a sexbot who can do like…let’s see…ok, none of those specific tasks. But only a few things. Just a few, simple things.

  137. 137.

    Ben Franklin

    @MikeJ:

    Execrable bullshit. The only way we will discover ANYTHING of educational value, is if he was taken alive, so fucking take that back !

  138. 138.

    ? Martin

    @Ben Franklin:

    Did you read, or hear about how many rounds were fired into the boat.

    Everything I’ve read is that all the rounds were fired FROM the boat. When that started, they backed off, sent in the helicopter, then sent in the robot/tank thing, then went with flashbangs.

  145. 145.

    FlipYrWhig

    @? Martin: for instance, has anyone started harrumphing about the surveillance by helicopter that confirmed the guy was hiding in the boat?

  146. 146.

    Maude

    @? Martin:
    I saw hydrangea bushes coming into leaf and thought of you. You always have them way before we do.
    Tulips are just blooming now. It’s cold here.

  150. 150.

    Yutsano

    @Mustang Bobby:

    I’m hanging out with friends in Key Largo when I should be working on a paper for a conference.

    I choose to encourage this behaviour. :)

    @El Caganer: Ain’t no banh mi that’s for sure.

  151. 151.

    Amir Khalid

    @Ultraviolet Thunder:
    The ancestors of house cats chose, for reasons of their own — because they took a liking to us? Because they figured we’d be soft touches for food and shelter? — to move in with humans. So one could say that house cats played an active part in their own invention.

  153. 153.

    Yutsano

    @Amir Khalid:

    Genetic, morphological and archaeological evidence suggests that the housecat was domesticated from the African wildcat, probably 9,000-10,000 years ago in the Fertile Crescent region of the Near East, coincident with the rise of agriculture and the need to protect harvests from grain-eating rodents. This domestication probably occurred when grain was yielded from the Agricultural Revolution onwards, which was stored in granaries that attracted rodents, which in turn attracted cats.[3]

    Kittehs only like us for our fudz.

  154. 154.

    Keith

    @scav: I actually do have a couple of LitterRobots, but they both broke, and I haven’t had the time or stomach to sit down and try to fix them. (in fact, I’ve had just about every automated litterbox except for the one that flushes into the septic system.)

  155. 155.

    Suzanne

    Mr. Suzanne and I ran Pat’s Run yesterday. We figured it would be the last time for a while that we got to do something outside withoutt praying for death for a while. We just got back from Costco, and it’s already warm enough that crossing a parking lot sucks arse.

    Look at us. We ran over four miles yesterday, but crossing a parking lot today is already heading into awful territory.

  156. 156.

    MattR

    @lamh35: I have absolutely no idea about those reports, but it doesn’t make much sense that he would have tried to kill himself and accepted failure – rather than trying again or just making a sudden movement as the cops finally approached to apprehend him.

  157. 157.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @Yutsano:

    From the cats’ point of view they were adapting to a new ecological niche that happened to have rodents living near humans. Over time and with more selection pressure Felis Domesticus could become a new species. The way human body lice evolved from something else to a pest that only lives on Homo Sapiens.
    But not as icky.

  158. 158.

    Suffern ACE

    @Ben Franklin: yes. After kicking out us NGOs for being CIA fronts, a regretful Putin is sad and asks “how can I do something that will get the CIA to come back?”

  160. 160.

    smedley the uncertain

    @Ultraviolet Thunder:
    Along with Mouser I recommend http://www.digikey.com.
    As a long time Ham, techie building my own gear, Radio Shack of late disappoints as a source of electronic parts. Mouser and DigiKey always seem to have ‘it’ when I need it. Pricing is fair especially considering the small quantities I usually order. Where are you published? I would very much like to read your articles. Always looking for new projects.

  162. 162.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @smedley the uncertain:

    I use Mouser, Newark and Digikey for most of my own stuff, plus small orders from among the many Shenzhen sellers.
    But this assignment for MAKE Magazine requires sourcing from Radio Shack. I too lament the reduction of their former tech inventory. But I understand the change in emphasis and can’t blame them. Lafayette is long gone and Radio Shack is still with us.

  164. 164.

    raven

    Tell me it was worth it to take apart a deck, clean the nails and screws out of about 40 eight foot 2×4’s, drag them down into the deep backyard and stack them in the hope of recycling them?

  165. 165.

    MikeJ

    @smedley the uncertain: If Radio Shack is a sponsor it really doesn’t matter how great any other electronics store is.

    It is ironic that they want Makers to feel the nostalgia for RS of old while their current stocking practices make it so hostile to the builder/experimenter/hacker.

    Speaking of which, has anybody used Atmel studio to do anything? They sell lots of cheap chips and it looks like you could do some fun stuff. Mouser has loads of them for a couple of bucks.

  166. 166.

    The Dangerman

    @Suffern ACE:

    So someone stole first last night on the Cubs.

    I don’t know if “Butt Fumble” is still the reigning champ of Not Top 10…

    …but we have a contender here.

    I love baseball for the plays that have never happened previously; last year, I watched a 2-5-3-1 Triple Play (Dodgers, vs. Padres, I think) that had never happened previously (and probably never will again since the Umpire had to “get involved” too).

    ETA: Gotta love YouTube:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2y8k1ggOVQ

    For the A/R fans here (guess that would include me), it looked like a 2-6-3-1 play.

    ETA: As for the Ump, first he called the ball foul and then it rolled fair and he corrected himself.

  167. 167.

    ? Martin

    @Maude: Our hydrangea’s haven’t bloomed yet, but they’re fully leafed out. Our tulips came up for Valentines Day, which pleased Ms Martin to no end, but they’re fully played out. Lots of other stuff came in to make up for them, though. Moving a rose bush today and other little odds and ends.

  169. 169.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    @MikeJ:

    It is ironic that they want Makers to feel the nostalgia for RS of old while their current stocking practices make it so hostile to the builder/experimenter/hacker.

    RS still has vastly more inventory in hobbyist parts online than in the stores. Only the high volume stuff is stocked locally.
    Also they’re basically the ONLY retail store still supporting electronics hobbyists. The fact that that is reduced is our fault as well as theirs: demand.
    RS has gotten deep into Arduino microcontroller technology, stocking a good range of items in the stores. This is where a lot of the modern robot/automation development is going. It’s a smart move.

  170. 170.

    scav

    What pisses me off is the stupidity of A) assuming there would necessarily been evidence two years ago and B) assuming there necessarily has to be foreign involvement, even if there’s some sort of Islamic justification for actions (So much for the ‘mercan can-do spirit, criminals can’t manage stuff on their lonesome). Might very well be any of the above and might very well be something that slipped by whatever checking that happened but that has to proven. I’m sure some officers of the law spoke to Mr Adair, why the hell didn’t they pick up on the fact that he and minions weren’t obeying safety regs? Why aren’t “those” kind of people identified earlier (at birth?) and kept away from the like of “us” isn’t that far away — as is the belief that americans can, if not have, somehow a right to be sheltered from all the dangerous and unpleasent bits of life. TV anchors going on about how treelined that final neighborhood was and how unfair it was that such violence was happening there. What neighborhood is it thus entirely OK for it to be happening in?

    whew. /rant. Is that ok or did I get too loopy in there?

  172. 172.

    ? Martin

    @Ben Franklin:

    Christ ! The young man was trying to off himself and kept missing and hitting the boat hull.

    Wait, so after referencing muzzle flashes as evidence that the police shot the boat, you now point to an article about people wanting to replace a boat full of holes, with no comment regarding what direction the bullets were flying in.

    Where’s the photo or video of the muzzle flashes you previously mentioned, or was that just so much lies and bullshit as usual from you?

  174. 174.

    ? Martin

    @Ultraviolet Thunder:

    Also they’re basically the ONLY retail store still supporting electronics hobbyists.

    Maybe where you are. Fry’s around here is immensely better (in spite of being a complete shithole of a store). No problem finding ICs, breadboards, etc.

  175. 175.

    Ben Franklin

    @? Martin:

    or was that just so much lies and bullshit as usual from you?

    Well I gave you a couple of escape hatches wrt the perp shooting from the inside.

    The guy is just shamming the public for a new boat. That fits you like a glove donnit?

  178. 178.

    Bruce S

    Today Maureen Dowd blames Obama for the background checks gun bill not passing the Senate. Apparently he shouldn’t have read the Senators their Miranda rights…failed to use drones…sent Joe Biden to the Senate instead of going up there himself (because, you know, Biden doesn’t know anything about that institution or its denizens)…and didn’t make lots of war-room charts like Aaron Sorkin imagined in “American President.”

    God knows I’ve been critical of this administration on various issues, but this kind of Villager political and historical myopia (“LBJ!” “FDR!”) in service of writing columns with lots of alliteration and clever word-play, is beyond stupid.

  179. 179.

    ? Martin

    @Ben Franklin:

    Well I gave you a couple of escape hatches wrt the perp shooting from the inside.

    WTF are you talking about. You:

    From what I saw (constant muzzle flashes and reports)

    Where did you see it? Link to the photos or video. Or are you now claiming you’re the boat owner and watched it from your window?

    The guy is just shamming the public for a new boat. That fits you like a glove donnit?

    From your link:

    People on Twitter are echoing the calls to help Henneberry, hailing him a hero.

    “Bravo, David Henneberry! You are a true American hero. I say we all pitch in and buy you a new boat. #welldeserved,” one person tweeted.

    Another wrote, “Some boat company needs to hook David Henneberry up with a new boat. His has a few holes in it. Holey #boats don’t float.”

    Henneberry’s boat is reportedly a 22-foot Seahawk cruiser with a fiberglass hull, which retails for around $50,000.

    He did not return ABC News’ request for a comment.

    So, the guy is grifting the public by not saying a goddamn thing, other than impersonating a zillion random people on twitter. Quite an elaborate plan he had set up.

    Jesus, you are the stupidest fucking troll ever.

  180. 180.

    Gravenstone

    @? Martin: Expecting a consistent argument from Benjiboi is like expecting the sun to rise from the south and set on the moon. The buffoon exists solely to stir shit and is best ignored.

  181. 181.

    Corner Stone

    @scav:

    or did I get too loopy in there

    As I understand it, too loopy is just fine. It’s when you go one past too loopy that you break court damnation. Or at least a good shaming.

  183. 183.

    Ben Franklin

    @? Martin:

    the guy is grifting the public by not saying a goddamn thing, other than impersonating a zillion random people on twitter. Quite an elaborate plan he had set up.

    You are either a few sandwiches shy of a picnic or just plain lyin’.

    That entry was a benefit for you since that would be your explanation for him needing a new boat, sans police bullet holes.

    Now take that vibrator out yer arse.

  184. 184.

    MattR

    @? Martin: Let me help you out a bit. I think that Ben does not believe it possible that there would be bullet holes in the boat from Dzhokhar shooting out of it, only from the police shooting into it.

  186. 186.

    MattR

    @Ben Franklin: Huh? I don’t agree with that at all. It sounds like Martin believes the bullet holes could have come from either direction so he asked for a link stating that the police fired into the boat because he had heard reports that all the shots in that incident had come from Dzhokhar.

  187. 187.

    Morzer

    @scav:

    I guess our little Benny Crackpot hasn’t yet figured out that it’s a bad, bad idea to jerk off while standing on his head.

  189. 189.

    PurpleGirl

    @Ultraviolet Thunder: I loved the Radio Shack catalogs of 30-odd years ago, with TV sets and radios and other things you could make from kits. Always thought it would be cool to build a TV set.

  191. 191.

    ? Martin

    @Ben Franklin:

    Clearly, Martin believes it unpossible for entry holes on the boat exterior.

    I never said that. You said:

    From what I saw (constant muzzle flashes and reports)

    I said that everything I’ve read and seen was that Dzhokhar shot from inside the boat outside. And when I listen to the audio, I hear no overlapping shots, unlike the audio of the other shootout. That suggests to me that there was one shooter, not a bunch of police shootings simultaneously.

    Where’s the evidence (or even reports) that the police did the shooting? You said you saw muzzle flashes. Link it. Let’s see. Because I’m certain you are straight up lying on this.

    Clearly you have some grand conspiracy theory in mind here, along the lines of some shifty boat owner luring a troubled 19 year old into his boat, tipping off police so they’d shoot it up (or maybe the boat owner was the shooter – hmm), whereby he can then grift the public for a new boat. That’s it, isn’t it?

  192. 192.

    Ben Franklin

    @? Martin:

    Clearly you have some grand conspiracy theory in mind here, along the lines of some shifty boat owner luring a troubled 19 year old into his boat, tipping off police so they’d shoot it up (or maybe the boat owner was the shooter – hmm), whereby he can then grift the public for a new boat. That’s it, isn’t it?

    Still corn-holing that notion? The grifting seems to be what your stuck on. That’s not what I said.

    AS for the gunfire, I saw several muzzle flashes coming from, what, one assailant? And it was on the News, so I understand if you didn’t see it.

    I also note the lack of return fire from your perspective. Must be nice to live in Disneyland.

  194. 194.

    ? Martin

    @Ben Franklin:

    AS for the gunfire, I saw several muzzle flashes coming from, what, one assailant? And it was on the News, so I understand if you didn’t see it.

    Then find it. Every piece of video finds its way on YouTube within hours. Find it. I’ve not seen a single clip of video of the gunfire including the boat. Only audio, or video taken from a distance where there was no view of the boat which caught the gunfire audio in the background.

    Find it. You’ve found all kinds of irrelevant pictures and video – find something relevant for a change.

  197. 197.

    smedley the uncertain

    @MikeJ:
    Didn’t think about the sponsorship. RS was the source of choice for me years ago. I miss the instant gratification of running the door finding the part I needed, and always a few more; then heading home to plug it in. Back in the days of playing with TTL IC’s which RS stocked in abundance. Sadly it is no more and what I find there now is overpriced. For real nostalgia, trips to Radio Row in NYC and Arch street in Philly would wipe out the budget for a month but what joy…

  199. 199.

    smedley the uncertain

    @Ultraviolet Thunder: What tubes do you need. I’ve a 50 yr collection that needs a good home. I’ve noticed more plans lately for radios/amps that glow in the dark.
    Real Radios glow in the dark…

  200. 200.

    Hal

    @Ben Franklin:

    She’s being eviscerated by readers. Multiple comments with 1,000 plus likes telling her she’s dead wrong, while the NYT picks are more mixed and pro-Dowd. Huh.

  201. 201.

    lojasmo

    LOL: “two un named officials” cited from ONE news source (NYDN)

    So, again, we can take Bennie with a huge block of NaCl

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