kingoden

Filed under: Motorsports, Convertible, Performance, Government/Legal, Videos, BMW

Don't speed. Don't drive recklessly. Don't try to break the unofficial record for a lap of Manhattan. And if you go against this reasonable advice, do not, under any circumstances, record it and post the video on YouTube. If you do, you'll end up like Christopher Adam Tang - under arrest and facing a bevy of charges relating to the video.

Tang posted the video, which showed him lapping Manhattan in 24 minutes last Wednesday, and it quickly went viral. Now Tang, who went by the online moniker AfroDuck, is in cuffs. According to a local CBS affiliate, he was picked up at his home on Wednesday evening by police, who also seized the car used in the video, a 2006 BMW Z4.

What isn't clear is how Tang was caught. His video seems carefully done in that there are no outwardly visible signs that point to him, while the video itself is clearly sped up. While the NYPD hasn't come out and said that Tang was caught due to its extensive surveillance systems around the city, police commissioner Ray Kelly did point out that the new systems "will assist in this type of investigation." Let that serve as a warning to anyone that tries to break the 24-minute barrier. Scroll down to watch the full video.

Continue reading Police arrest 'Fastest Lap Around Manhattan' driver [w/video]

Police arrest 'Fastest Lap Around Manhattan' driver [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 06 Sep 2013 19:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Francoise Hardy on the ‘Grand Prix’ film set seen wearing co-star James Garner’s helmet, 1966.

Francoise Hardy was a wistful breath of fresh air during the sex, drugs & rock ‘n’ roll of the 1960s. Mysterious, sweetly naive, and utterly desirable. She was adored by Bob Dylan, Nick Drake, Mick Jagger, David Bowie, and more. The incredible enduring images of Hardy, particularly those by famed photographer Jean-Marie Perier (who shot her donned in Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, Andre Courréges, and Paco Rabanne), made her an instant and timeless style icon. With her faraway gaze and lazy smile, Francoise Hardy is like a melancholy dream that you simply don’t want to wake up from. Her unease with fame and adoration is at times clearly evident in her photos– serving only to make her even more alluring.

Francoise Hardy perched atop a Honda motorcycle is an all-time internet #babesonbikes favorite.

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Francoise Hardy resting in a Formula One race car during the filming of Grand Prix, 1966.

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Francoise Hardy sittting in a Formula One race car during the filming of Grand Prix, 1966.

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Francoise Hardy, Antonio Sabato, and director John Frankenheimer on the set of 1966′s Grand Prix, which won three Academy Awards. The four stars— James Garner, Yves Montand, Brian Bedford and Antonio Sabato did their own driving on real GP tracks. World-famous “Grand Prix” drivers who appear in the picture include 1962 world champion Graham Hill, Jack Brabham, World Champion in 1959, 1960 & 1966; five-time World Champion Juan Manuel Fangio (1951, ’54, ’55, ’56 & ’57), and 1961 World Champion Phil Hill. via

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Francoise Hardy with Formula One racing legend (Sir) Jack Brabham, three-time World Champion, during the filming of Grand Prix, 1966. Brabham was the first driver in history to be knighted for his services to motorsport, and the only Formula One driver to have won a world title in a car of his own construction – the BT19 – which he drove to victory in 1966. The following year the Brabham team won its second successive world championship when New Zealander Denny Hulme drove the BT20 to victory. via

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Francoise Hardy snapping photos during the filming of Grand Prix, 1966.

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Francoise Hardy – Photo by © Jean-Marie Périer

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Francoise Hardy posing at her Paris home (in a 670/671 Eames lounge chair?), 1970— Image by © Leonard de Raemy/Sygma/Corbis

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Francoise Hardy – Photo by © Jean-Marie Périer

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Francoise Hardy playing guitar

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Francoise Hardy in Central Park, 1969. — Image by © JP Laffont/Sygma/Corbis

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Francoise Hardy in Montmartre – Photo by © Jean-Marie Périer

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Sylvie Vartan & Francoise Hardy on French TV. — Image by © James Andanson/Apis/Sygma/Corbis

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Francoise Hardy at Olympia Hall in Paris, 1965. — Image by © Pierre Fournier/Sygma/Corbis

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Francoise Hardy in Amsterdam, 1969. – Photograph by Joost Evers

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Singers/songwriters/spouses, Jacques Dutronc & Francoise Hardy, 1965. — Image by © Leonard de Raemy/Sygma/Corbis

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Georges Moustaki and Francoise Hardy, 1969 International Pop and Rock Festival of the Isle of Wight. — Image by © Jean-Louis Atlan/Sygma/Corbis

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Georges Moustaki and Francoise Hardy on a Honda motorcycle in Paris, 1970. – Photo by © Jean-Marie Périer

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Filed under: Government/Legal

Every state has different rules governing what can and can't be displayed on vanity license plates. Not only do they vary, but many are vague about what combinations of letters and/or numbers are acceptable, which forces the state to determine acceptability on a case-by-case basis. Remember the 'ILVTOFU' controversy of 2011? Or what about Georgia's rejection of gay-themed license plates?

New Jersey resident David Silverman has published a tale on Twitter regarding his application to the state's Motor Vehicle Commission for a personalized license plate that reads "ATHEIST." Silverman says in his tweet that the reason given for the state's rejection of his godless vanity plate was that it's offensive.

We don't have much insight into how New Jersey decides which vanity plates are acceptable, but we did find this report published earlier this year on NJ.com that reveals a list of 1,085 words banned by the MVC for use on vanity plates. ATHEIST is not on the list (nor is THEIST, for that matter), but MVC spokesman Mike Horan told the reporter that applications are reviewed on a case-by-case basis, so the list has probably grown since then.

New Jersey's got another problem: David Silverman isn't just any atheist, he's the President of American Atheists, a group that's been around since the '60s with a track record of taking cities and states to court to uphold the rights of non-believers. It doesn't sound like Silverman was looking for a fight, but the Garden State just gave him one. He's already filed his first appeal.

New Jersey rejects 'ATHEIST' vanity plate for being offensive originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 27 Aug 2013 12:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Photographs of Earth from the ESA Archive Title: Walt Whitman The icy waters of the Baltic Sea surrounding Germany’s largest island, Rügen, JAXA/ESA A phytoplankton bloom swirls a figure-of-8 in the South Atlantic Ocean about 600 km east of the Falkland Islands. Different types and quantities of phytoplankton exhibit different colours, such as the blues and greens in this image, ESA The landscape of the Tanezrouft Basin, one of the most desolate parts of the Sahara desert, in south-central Algeria. The region is known as ‘land of terror’ because of its lack of water and vegetation, JAXA/ESA The southern Atacama Desert, with the border of Chile (west) and Argentina (east) running down the middle. The Atacama is believed to be the driest desert in the world, and the lack of cloud cover in this image highlights the dry climate, ESA Beijing, NASA/ESA Clearwater Lakes, located to the east of the Hudson Bay, what appears to be two separate lakes is actually a single body of water that fills two depressions. The depressions were created by two meteorite impacts, believed to have hit Earth simultaneously up to 290 million years ago, USGS/ESA The northern part of the country of Namibia. Namibia is located on the west coast of southern Africa between Angola and South Africa, ESA Lake Powell, USGS/ESA In this false-color image of the Mississippi River delta, land vegetation appears pink, while the sediment in the surrounding waters are bright blue and green, USGS/ESA The sand seas of the Namib Desert, KARI/ESA The Paraná River cuts through this image of southern Brazil, ESA The northern end of the Persian Gulf, along with the border of Iran and Iraq and the mouth of the Shatt al-Arab river, USGS/ESA Sand and dust blowing northeast from the Arabian Peninsula across the Persian Gulf toward Iran (visible at image top), ESA The foothills of the Andes mountains near the southern coast of Peru, KARI/ESA Sand and dust from the Sahara Desert blowing across the Atlantic Ocean along the coasts of Mauritania (top), Senegal (middle) and Guinea Bissau (bottom), ESA North central Siberia, ESA Three of the five Great Lakes of North America. Lakes Huron (left) and Erie (bottom) are partially ice-covered following snow storms in Michigan and Cleveland, while Lake Ontario (right) is completely visible in blue, ESA Running across the image, the Okavango River forms the border between Namibia to the south and Angola to the north, KARI/ESA Rolling hills of farmland in part of the Palouse Region in the northwest United States, KARI/ESA The Tibesti Mountains, located mostly in Chad with the northern slopes extending into Libya, ESA More photographs of Earth Atley

“If people were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern people, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by people over people, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself. A dependence on the people is, no doubt, the primary control on the government; but experience has taught humanity the necessity of auxiliary precautions.”
― James Madison, The Federalist Papers

“In no case shall information be classified… in order to: conceal violations of law, inefficiency, or administrative error; prevent embarrassment to a person, organization, or agency… or prevent or delay the release of information that does not require protection in the interest of the national security.”
—Executive Order 13526, Sec. 1.7. Classification Prohibitions and Limitations

“Is this embarrassing? Yes. Is this awkward? Yes. Consequences for U.S. foreign policy? I think fairly modest.”
—Robert Gates, Unites States Secretary of Defense

Filed under: Motorsports, Lotus, Ferrari, Rumormill

Kimi Raikkonen, easily one of our favorite current drivers in Formula 1, may be making a move from Lotus to Ferrari, according to a Finnish tabloid called Ilta-Sanomat. Raikkonen, who won the driver's championship in 2007 with the Italian brand, is in high demand and is also rumored to have options on the table from Red Bull and his current team.

Of course, a move by Kimi to Ferrari means at least one of the Maranello-based outfit would need to find another ride. Driving ace Fernando Alonso has publicly voiced his displeasure with the Ferrari chassis, and rumors have the Spaniard considering a move to Red Bull to replace Mark Webber. Buckle up, folks, this Silly Season is shaping up to be bumpy...

Kimi Raikkonen moving to Ferrari? originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 14 Aug 2013 18:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Government/Legal, Technology, Specialty, Russia, Off-Road

It's no secret that Russian/US relations are strained. And while things aren't nearly as bad as in, say, 1980, controversial issues between the two superpowers still exist. Thankfully, we still have the friendly spirit of competition to let off some steam. But rather than a footrace or even a game of ice hockey, this latest competition between Russia and the US will involve tanks. And explosives. We can't wait.

According to a report from NPR, during a meeting with their Russian counterparts, Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel were challenged to a tank biathlon. Naturally, the Americans picked up Russia's gauntlet.

In a regular biathlon, the two events are traditionally cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. A tank biathlon, meanwhile, involves the tanks covering 20 kilometers of rough terrain as fast as possible, while firing on a number of pop-up targets with all the tank's weapons. That means a crack tank crew is needed to win the event more than anything else. Still, being Autoblog, we couldn't help but take a look at the two likely MBT (main battle tanks) that will be used in the competition. This also gave us an opportunity to look at pictures of tanks, which is never a bad thing.

Russia's T-90 (pictured in the inset) started production in 1992, and if the latest version is used in competition, the T-90MS, it packs a rear-engined 12-cylinder with 1250 horsepower and a top speed of around 40 miles per hour. It's main gun is a 125-millimeter smoothbore cannon that fires a variety of shells, ranging from fragmentation shells, to armor-piercing sabot shells, to good-ole-fashioned high explosives. It's secondary weapon is a .50-caliber heavy machine gun that can be controlled remotely from within the tank.

America's tank, the M1 Abrams (pictured top), has been in production since 1980. The Abrams is powered by a Honeywell gas turbine with 1,500 horsepower and 2,750 pound-feet of torque. 'Merica. It can hit 42 mph on road, but only 25 mph off-road. It's main gun is a 120-mm smoothbore cannon that can reach out and touch people with shells similar to the Russian T-90. Unlike the T-90, though, the M1 has three machine guns - a .50-caliber heavy machine gun, along with a pair of 7.62-mm M240 machine guns. There's no word when the Tanklympics will be taking place, but we can only hope it'll be televised.

Russia challenges US to friendly tank competition originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 14 Aug 2013 08:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Its hard to pick a favorite Paul Rudolph image, i’m just soo inspired every time I look his sketches, i’ve actually decided to get one tattooed on me.

Below is a Fact mix that i’ve been going back to, really solid and thought though, not just a bunch favorites slapped together, that seems to be the Dial way.

Tracklist:
1. Raymond Scott – Country Fair (Instrumental)
2. Dj Sotofett – Asa Med
3. Anthony Shake Shakir – Frayed
4. Perception – Abandoned Building In Mono
5. Max/Ernst – 7Klick1
5. Steevio – Ty (Deep Mix)
6. Furthr – Enta (enypnion)
7. DJ Qu – Times Like This
8. Black Jazz Consortium – Be And Not Know Why (feat. Christina Wheeler)
9. STL – Paku Paku
10. Jason Fine – Conical
11. Delroy Edwards – 4 Club Use Only
12. Ra. H – Spacepops
13. Gherkin Jerks – Midi Beats
14. Vakula – 41600
15. Delano Smith – Invitation Only (Reconstructed by Tobias.)
16. M-Core – Be Gene
17. Parallel 9 – Dominus
18. Echoplex – Soleil
19. tvhosten – Swinger EP
20. Acid Jesus – Radium
21. Lucy – Finegan (Pariah Rmx)
22. MLZ – One State
23. Jeroen – Axis
24. D5 – Run
25. Mark Ambrose – Bellringers
26. Phuture – Rise From Your Grave
27. Dream 2 Science – Dream 2 Science

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The most iconic photos from the manned exploration of space come from the monumental Apollo project. But something you may not know is that nearly every single famous photo from that program was taken using cameras from one company: Hasselblad. ...

Mark Kologi, habitant de Los Angeles, a collecté et vendu des millions de clichés et photos oubliés, laissés à l’abandon ou vendus par des étrangers. Des moments de vie qu’il collectionne dans son garage et qu’il vend aussi, et qui a fait l’objet d’une vidéo appelée « The Photo Man » signée Ben Kitnick. A découvrir dans la suite.

I am loving this new rave trend that is all over EDM festivals. Kandi masks! Way to move beyond glow sticks kids.

So, here’s an email I got on Tuesday afternoon:

Hello Vandalog writers,

I recently attached a dildo to a shoebox with wheels and then hooked it onto one of the SF cable cars. I like to think that this counts as art.

Here’s a link to the full youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjH3OhJKKcI

Here’s a link to a short .gif: http://imgur.com/Jy9v9LV

I hope you like it! Let me know if you decide to publish it or if you have any questions

Thanks!

DPMT

Here’s the video:

No comment.

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RJ Rushmore for Vandalog | Permalink | No comments

Shepard Fairey has expressed his disappointment in Obama before, but maybe never with such strong language as he used on his own blog recently when discussing Edward Snowden’s release of documents relating to PRISM and other NSA domestic spying programs. The posters Fairey designed promoting Obama are some of the most iconic political images in a generation, but now Fairey writes, “The extent of Obama’s spying is unacceptable and I feel sickened and betrayed by someone I dedicated a huge amount of time, energy, and money to support based on the way he presented his views as the antithesis of Bush’s. The charge of Edward Snowden with espionage for exposing the Prism program only dims my view of the Obama administration further.”

In the same blog post, Fairey defends Snowden writing, “I got choked up today thinking of the courage it takes to expose a horrible problem when you know you will be brutalized as a consequence. I see nationalism as falling in line with the govt. agenda regardless of how morally flawed it is, while I see patriotism as doing what pushes the country in a morally superior direction, even if it conflicts with govt. policy. We need more patriots and fewer nationalists.”

There have been a few great parodies of Fairey’s Obama images in light of Snowden’s revelations, and Fairey told the LA Times that he’s happy that people are subverting his work to critique Obama.

You can read Fairey’s full post about Snowden, Bradley Manning, and Prism here and his full comments to the LA Times here.

Photo by Daquella manera

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RJ Rushmore for Vandalog | Permalink | No comments

Towers of Babel Title: Gerard Reve (I stand at the edge of the world and cry: “Where art Thou?” The echo answers: “Art Thou? Thou?”) Folkert

Photographs (from the LIFE archives) by Hugo Jaeger (Adolf Hitler’s personal photographer) The story of how LIFE came to own Jaeger’s collection of 2,000 photographs Folkert

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Green Culture, Tesla Motors

Following his big battery swap reveal in California Thursday night, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is turning his eye to New York. That's where a new tactic by the local auto dealers could put a damper on Tesla's electric-vehicle success story.

"Just heard that NY auto dealers are sneaking through a bill to shut down Tesla in NY" - Elon Musk

Specifically, Green Car Reports says, there are two nearly identical bills being stealthily moved through the New York state legislature (Assembly bill A07844 and State bill S05725) that would prohibit the state from registering any vehicles that had not been sold through an independent third party (i.e., a dealer). The move prompted Musk to Tweet, "Just heard that NY auto dealers are sneaking through a bill to shut down Tesla in NY. Please call your state senator!" He later sent out, "NY Assembly passing bill to shut down Tesla, but Senate holding the line. Appreciate senators resisting influence of auto dealer lobby."

It's the latest round in a fight that started when the state dealers filed a suit against Tesla's dealer-free sales method in late 2012. The New York Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that the dealers could not use the Franchised Dealer Act as a reason to sue competitors. The New York State Automobile Dealers Association has a letter (PDF) claiming the support of out-of-state groups like the Alliance of Automotive Manufacturers and the Global Alliance of Manufacturers. Tesla currently has two stores in New York, in Queens and White Plains, and one more planned (in Long Island).

That outside support makes sense, since Tesla is embroiled in a struggle with dealers in other states (Massachusetts and Texas come to mind). Nationwide, dealers are putting up quite a fight against Tesla, which makes sense when you realize the automaker is the first to give them this much of a challenge before, at least in recent memory. Since Musk has talked about taking the dealer fight national, we don't think this is the last we'll hear of this story.

NY dealers try to make it illegal to register a Tesla EV originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Sat, 22 Jun 2013 13:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ghurkarangefinder:

Barnett Newman’s Broken Obelisk in the reflecting pond outside The Rothko Chapel.

“Cops especially loved Belushi”

Brought to you by Jean-Babtiste Mondino. This editorial has been in nearly every inspiration board I've assembled for the past few years. Not only are the shots beautiful, but the styling is perfect. I think I need to go more post-apocalyptic gypsy dandy for Fall '13.

Eggleston by Eggleston.

Filed under: Concept Cars, Classics, BMW, Motorcycle, Specialty, Design/Style

The Concept 90 is one of two new vehicles BMW is showing off at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este on the tony shores of Lake Como in Italy. This year is the 90th anniversary of BMW Motorrad and the 40th anniversary of the R 90 S (inset) - the first production motorcycle to come with a front fairing - and BMW has worked with custom bike builder Roland Sands Design to craft a homage to the Daytona Orange boxer from the Seventies.

While following the line of its forbearer, obviously the Concept 90 has been sexed and sleeked up. The bodywork is of hand-worked aluminum, the giant halogen lamp of the 1975 model (which is when Daytona Orange was introduced) has gone LED, and the front engine cover, valve covers, exhaust and wheels have been made with a contrast-cut milling process.

For a finer description of the Concept 90 check out the press release below, or skip the words and go straight to the high-res images above.

Continue reading BMW Concept 90 Motorcycle debuts at Villa d'Este

BMW Concept 90 Motorcycle debuts at Villa d'Este originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 24 May 2013 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Innovation Ohio is a nonpartisan think tank that studies public policy in the state. Its reports are carefully researched and documented.

Its latest study finds that charter schools, a favorite “reform” of Governor John Kasich and the Republican-dominated legislature, cost taxpayers twice as much as public schools and hurt the public schools that enroll the other 90% of the children in the state.

The purpose of this post is not so much to write my own review of the book (I read it many years ago and I’m left mostly with a fierce impression of quality) but instead to build out a more coherent link structure from my too longstanding goal to read all of the Modern Library novels.  You can see my progress at Herein, I Attempt to Become a Man of Letters.

Lolita is one of best books I’ve ever read not in terms of the content but in terms of prose.  No reasonable person could read the book and not commit a few lines to memory.  I even named a playlist after one of my favorite lines: She moved like a fair angel among horrible boschian cripples.

However, the thing which I would very much like to draw your attention to is this review of the book by Christopher Hitchens, which is absolutely spectacular.  I strongly recommend it.

The wikipedia article is also worth pursuing.  If you’re into it these are 185 covers of Lolita over 37 countries and 56 years.

L’artiste chinois Yang Yongliang a dévoilé récemment une partie des ses clichés qui seront présentés à la Galerie Paris-Beijing à partir du 14 mars 2013. Des images d’une beauté saisissante réunies sous le nom de « The Silent City » à découvrir en images sur son portfolio et dans la suite de l’article.

Claire Droppert est une photographe et graphiste freelance résidant aux Pays-Bas. Cherchant l’inspiration à travers tous les paysages qu’elle observe, cette artiste toujours inspirées par la simplicité et le minimalisme nous offre des clichés absolument magnifiques à découvrir dans la suite de l’article.