firehose

As more people take up "reloading," even bullet-making components are getting harder to find.

Shakespeare’s women - Joan of Arc by Shakespeare Birthplace Trust on Flickr.

Reformation Church pastor Kevin Swanson recently went on his Generations with Vision radio show to condemn Star Trek Into Darkness because it shows James Kirk in a post-coital bed with members of the "wrong species." To which we can only respond—has Swanson ever seen Star Trek?

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Pie is neither tasty nor practical, and its revered status as the most patriotic pastry is ridiculous.

A whiskey seen in Dublin Airport Duty Free.

Personal life

On May 6, 2013, Chambliss played golf in a foursome with President Obama, Senator Bob Corker (R–TN), and Senator Mark Udall (D–CO) at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland. On the par three 11th hole, Chambliss made a hole in one, choking up on a five iron.^[48]

Link

(Please note this is the entirety of the ‘Personal life’ section]

sherlockisthebest:

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Supporters of former Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi clashed violently with his detractors Friday, with little sign the turmoil's going to abate any time soon. More than 30 people were killed in yesterday's violence. The country's interim leader is meeting with the military and in general trying to find his feet amid the chaos.

Meanwhile, leaders here in the US have been kicking back, celebrating freedom. Secretary of State John Kerry said he wasn't yachting, but he was absolutely yachting. Bird's gotta fly and John Kerry's gotta wear topsiders.

Ever-willing to antagonize the US government, Venezuela has announced it will give sanctuary to Edward Snowden. "In the name of America's dignity ... I have decided to offer humanitarian asylum to Edward Snowden," President Nicolas Maduro announced during a celebration of the country's independence day. Problem is, it's not remotely clear how Snowden would get to Santiago de León de Caracas, which I just learned is the official name of the Venezuelan capital. A plane carrying Bolivia's president was pulled out of the air earlier in the week because authorities thought the whistleblower could be aboard.

Snowden, by the way, has made quite a home for himself in the Moscow airport where he's spent almost two weeks. Friendly, outgoing and a touch naive, Snowden quickly won over the airport's many employees, and even has a burgeoning relationship with a flight attendant. Stanley Tucci's not happy, though. (This is the plot of The Terminal and perhaps not strictly true in the case of Edward Snowden.)

The state has rested its case against George Zimmerman, accused of murdering Florida teen Trayvon Martin, who was walking home from the store when Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer, decided he was suspicious. The central contention in the case, so far, is whether it is Martin or Zimmerman who can be heard screaming in a 911 call that recorded the incident.

An oil-toting train derailed early this morning, sparking an explosion and a fire that have leveled much of the small town of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec.

You guys seen JT's new video? Me neither, because it's filled with nudity and not allowed on YouTube and that's my only option in this day and age to view it. Rats!

China's beaches are disgusting but fun-looking? "Sea lettuce."

It's cloudy and chilly as I write this, but by the time you guys wake up it should be a pretty excellent day.

I can't watch his new video, but, damn it, I can still watch this JT classic on loop. Like the good old days. I wish I was joking.

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The king cobra's favorite food is other snakes, and this week-old snake makes its first meal of a water snake that isn't much skinnier than it is. It's fascinating to watch it wolf down the long body of its prey.

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Eternal Champions (Sega - Genesis - 1993)

New submitter Ahmed Shaban writes "Why do protesters in Cairo use laser pointers? At the beginning, they were used to light up snipers on rooftops. Later, it just became fashionable to use them, and such things spread very fast among the youth of Cairo, who can find the high power laser pointers for sale on the sidewalks. The article contains amazing photos of a chopper lit up by green laser pointers."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

This episode is busy!  I had to leave out so many things, like Scully finding a microchip implanted under her skin, or Scully and Frohike bonding over beers, which I found extremely charming.

Want the original art for this strip?

She comes in colors

(The Root) -- Another day, another white Disney princess. The Internet is speaking out about Disney's latest tale, a reworking of Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen. Promotional artwork for the retelling, entitled Frozen, reveals that the heroine is, again, white.

Incorporating diversity into Disney movies has been a slow climb. It wasn't until 2009 that the world saw the first black Disney protagonist with The Princess and the Frog. It seemed then that maybe Disney was ready to become more diverse in its movies, but for many, Frozen is proof of a return to the typical.

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Via Gizmodo

One percent of all the world’s commercially used wood—totaling 17.8 million cubic yards in 2012—is used to make IKEA products.

One in two babies in America today is born to an unwed mother. In 1980, the number was one in five.

One percent of Americans live in Iowa; so do 31 percent of American pigs.

One disease—diabetes—accounts for 13 percent of all U.S. medical-care spending, a total of $176 billion last year.

One counselor is employed for every 1,016 public-school students in California. That is the highest ratio in the U.S., and more than double the national average.

deepredroom:

A reminder that “male” armour usually works just as well with female bodies. If you’re trying to design something practical, useful and historical looking (or even just something the follows the laws of physics), never ever put in boob cups. Aside from the fact they give the armour a sort of “focus point” for swords, falling down on them would send the shock right into the sternum. Regular plate armour leaves enough space between the chest for small to medium sized boobs anyway. But say the girl underneath is a buxom lass, you can still avoid that cleavage, boob cup shape while leaving enough space for her melons.

But aside from plate, things like the top picture, chainmail and all sorts of leather armour are unisex. I know you might be thinking that the feminine thing to do when designing a female warrior is to show off a bit of thigh or neck or cleavage or something, but really, understand that if the goal of that armour is to protect completely, putting an obvious gap in it is a terrible idea and she’ll surely get stabbed very quickly.

And don’t feed me the “it’s magic, I don’t got to explain shit” line. Bollox. Magic armour and forcefields need to make some sense too. Show me something that LOOKS like it’s generating a barrier over the character instead of just saying “Oh the G-string of Invulnerability is just as good as wearing full plate anyway”. If that’s the case, everyone would wear it. And why can’t they just tie it around their belt? Make me believe that your magic armour and spells have logic to them. If not, please don’t play your world straight. I’m all for super stylised designs as long as they’re sold as such, but if you’re trying to make a world that feels real enough for people to believe and get immersed in, think this stuff out. If you’ve designed someone with sparse, gapped armour that shows skin, give your character a reason to wear it.

This was suggested by tcharlatan, and I think my readers will find this interesting! (It’s also a good reference for the contest.)

ineloquent-tumbling:

laurlaurthechallenger:

I’m tired of seeing debate on this.  Prostitutes and sex workers of other kinds sell a service.  If you purchase that service, you are a customer.  If you, without consent, abuse their rights as a human, that is not tantamount to theft.  It’s a human rights abuse.  If you punch a boxer, you aren’t stealing their time as a professional to see their reaction.  You are assaulting them, and the law will recognize this and punish you accordingly.  Rape of prostitutes, however, is a much more serious and common abuse, and it is significantly less punished by law enforcement and societally regarded as a non-issue.  I’m a martial artist.  Compared to the average person, I am much more mentally prepared for the possibility of a physical attack.  It is the milieu I immerse myself in.  That doesn’t mean I want to be attacked, or that it would be ok to attack me, and no one would ever make that logical leap.  Prostitutes, while also more mentally prepared for the very real possibility they may be raped, are no more deserving of rape than I am of being assaulted.  A non-consensual assault against a person, regardless of profession or mental preparation for attack, is clearly still a human rights abuse and the equivalent of assault, not theft. Stop debating this shit.

You. I like you.

ABC News

Custody case strands Mass. mom, child in Brazil USA TODAY BOSTON (AP) — A Massachusetts mom says she and her 6-year-old daughter are stranded in Brazil after police seized their passports because of a custody battle with the child's father. Shauna Hadden went to Brazil in May to let her ex-husband reconnect ... American mom, daughter, 6, stuck in Brazil in child custody battleNBCNews.com (blog) Massachusetts Mother Trapped in Custody Battle in Brazil Fears She'll Be JailedABC News Mass. mom in Brazil: Custody dispute stranded meNECN all 42 news articles »

MojoKid writes "When Microsoft reversed its Xbox One DRM policies a few weeks back, there was momentary hope that the company has listened to its customers and understood the features they were asking for. Granted, this was brief. However, with Mattrick gone, there was some hope that maybe the company would reintroduce plans like Family Sharing and put the console back on track. Apparently not. Microsoft's big new feature with Kinect? Advertising. Microsoft plans to use Kinect to make advertisements even more engaging than their current counterparts. In the future, Kinect may offer you a 'Choose Your Own Adventure' style narrative in which you speak commands or give orders to an ad as its playing to change the final outcome. The other way the MS wants to use Kinect is to monitor what's going on in the living room to serve you group-appropriate content, rather than resorting to the plain old method of bombarding you with non-interactive advertising for things you don't care about. Microsoft will likely learn that telling gamers that the Xbox One is an ad-centric experience and attempting to spin it like a positive doesn't actually work."

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Birdseye view of Young America, Illinois (1869)

A. Ruger's Birdseye map of Young America township, Illinois, from 1869. Birdseye view of Young America, Ill. Date: 1869 Author: A. Ruger Dwnld: Full Size (6.8mb) Print Availability: See our Prints Page for more details pff Ruger's birdseye map of Young America, Illinois [gmap] from 1869. For more maps and images from this period in the region's history, visit the Illinois State Historical Society.

the BIG Map Blog - Interesting maps, historical maps, BIG maps.

Wis. gov signs abortion bill requiring ultrasound Houston Chronicle MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Scott Walker quietly signed a contentious Republican bill Friday that would require women seeking abortions to undergo an ultrasound and ban doctors who lack admitting privileges at nearby hospitals from performing the ... and more »

Happy birthday, America! Egypt's military going all out in its sacking of the Muslim Brotherhood, calling for the arrest of its leader mere hours after ousting Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in a coup preceded by days of intensifying protests. Morsi was a pain for secularists, making enemies with a series of power grab rulings—but his coup raises, all the same, about the nascent democracy in a country long ruled by autocrats.

Happy birthday, America! The guy in charge now, Adli Mansour, is a little-known judge and probably dancing to some general or another's tune.

Happy birthday, America! The worst part of the national ruination charitably named "Obamacare"—a requirement that businesses provide healthcare to the people lucky enough to serve the nation by serving hamburgers and entering data—has been pushed back until after the 2014 midterm elections. Nice try, Dumb-o-crats! Get it? Dumb-o-crats! HAW HAW HAW.

Happy birthday, America! Remember Afghanistan? Hidden bombs killed six kids in the occupied, civil-war-torn country—four girls who stepped on a hidden bomb while fetching water during a wedding party and two boys who tripped a roadside device. Civilian casualties, blamed on insurgents, keep going up and up—led by a rise in the deaths of children.

Happy birthday, America! Twelve protesters injured by cops during Occupy Oakland protests in 2011—including a 52-year-old divinity student whose hearing was damaged—will split $1 million in legal payouts.

Happy birthday, America! Ron Wyden and Mark Udall—senators who've long winked and nodded that the NSA was over-reaching with pervasive digital spying, programs eventually revealed in Edward Snowden's leaks—are calling out the White House for spinning baloney about its not-so-magnanimous decision to shut down a massive Internet surveillance in 2011.

Happy birthday, America! The beloved brother of one of those senators, Randy Udall, was found dead days after he was supposed to return from a weeklong mountain hike.

Happy birthday, America! The White House tried to "push dirt" on one of its loudest congressional critics—urging reporters, just before Darrell Issa ascended to a prominent investigative committee, to sample the ample negative stories in Issa's past.

Happy birthday, America! The national anti-choice playbook is spreading, like clockwork, across the country's statehouses. North Carolina just did a lot of what Texas wants to do: banning insurance from paying for abortion and imposing draconian registration restrictions on clinics.

Happy birthday, America! Rupert Murdoch was caught on tape, in a secret recording, admitting his company's news reporters paid cops for tips and crapping on an inquiry into widespread phone hacking and bribery.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMERICA!

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ABC News

Suspect arrested with Molotov cocktails had maps to Seattle colleges, police say NBCNews.com By Daniel Arkin and M. Alex Johnson, NBC News. Prosecutors say the Nevada man arrested near the University of Washington campus with weapons and explosives also had anti-government propaganda and directions to three Seattle colleges. Justin Miles ... Gunman's truck stolen from ButteMontana Standard Firebombs arrestThe Seattle Times Bail Set at $2M for Armed Man Arrested in SeattleABC News all 126 news articles »

Earlier this year, radio station WNYC mined the the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's dog license registration database to produce this map of dog breed popularity. Unsurprisingly, small breeds are popular in the city. Well, except Labs. Nothing stops the American obsession with Labs.

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West End and Wizards of the Coast had their go. Now it's Fantasy Flight Games' turn at tackling Star Wars tabletop role-playing, and they're off to a gruff and gritty start with Edge of the Empire. Who wants to be a bounty hunter?

Even when times were good at Groupon, founder and CEO Andrew Mason was known for questionable workplace hijinks. So perhaps it’s no surprise that a few months after he was fired, Mason has just released a seven-song album of inspirational business rock, featuring lines like ““I was climbing Machu Picchu / I beheld that splendid view / An idea came for 100 million / of shareholder value.”

The production values are actually quite good—Mason has a music degree from Northwestern, and it sounds like he blew a fair amount of that IPO money on top-notch studio musicians. But what about the inspiration part? We’ve taken a cursory spin through the album, “Hardly Workin,’” and distilled a few choice bits of Mason’s workplace wisdom. Is it painfully earnest business advice or a deadpan satire of a world that rejected him? You be the judge.

“Look No Further”

If Creedence Clearwater Revival wrote a song dissing business school: “If you’re seeking business wisdom you don’t need no MBA.”

“The Way to Work” 

Driving to the office on a Vespa—”that meditative moment”—is a source of inspiration. Non-Vespa commutes do not qualify.

“My Door Is Always Open” 

Restrictive office hierarchies are the enemy of innovation: “Why would we keep our thoughts, bottled inside of our heads, worried they might do some harm?”

“Risin’ Above the Pack”

A grab-bag of managerial aphorisms, with “Kansas” guitars and sassy backup singers: “Make sure the terms of success are clearly defined / know what’s expected and exceed it.”

“K.I.S.S.”
A flirtatious manifesto for simplicity: “The best things in life are clear without instructions / If you gotta explain it your plan needs reduction.”

“Stretch”

Try just a little bit harder ahead of that quarterly review: “Take the numbers you can hit for sure and add a little more / Quantify your best and add twenty percent.” Bonus: rap verse name-checking Berkshire Hathaway’s Charlie Munger.

“It’s Up to Us”

An anthem that looks back wistfully on the Groupon that was, or laments what might have been: “The opportunity to disrupt an industry / we’ll all look back and feel so lucky to make history / If it were easy someone would have already done it.”