Read a little. Learn a lot. • Tightly-written news, views and stuff • Follow us on Twitter • Be a Facebook Fan • Tumble us!

30 Jan 2010 18:19

tags

Politics: Mel Gibson tests out his sobriety by trashing on Barack Obama

  • He got left a mess and I wish him all the best but I don’t think he’s going to fix it in five minutes and probably not in his entire tenure.
  • Mel Gibson • Discussing his feelings on whether or not Barack Obama can succeed at fixing all the problems Bush left for him. He doesn’t think he’s up for it. In other news, Ricky Gervais got Mel Gibson good at the Golden Globes a couple weeks back. One of the best rips we’ve ever seen, actually. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Jan 2010 18:13

tags

U.S., World: Just like Russia for Libya, the U.S. chops off arms to give to Taiwan

  • $6.4 billion reasons for China to be really pissed source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Jan 2010 18:07

tags

Politics: Good news! John Edwards’ sex tape won’t see the light of day

  • “We were offered millions for that stupid tape.” In case you were hoping that video of Edwards, the former presidential candidate, and Rielle Hunter would see the light of day in some way, shape, or form, we have some bad news for you. Hunter’s fighting to get the tape back, and Andrew Young, the Edwards aide who found it, has it hidden away in a safe-deposit box. No sex tape for you! source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Jan 2010 17:52

tags

Politics: Obama’s pull-apart of the Republicans: Will it boost his image?

  • Rarely has there been such an encounter between a president and the opposition party and certainly never on national television. It was the antithesis of the kind of snarling exchanges that often pass for political dialogue, whether between strategists in the two parties, candidates in the heat of a campaign or on the worst of cable television.
  • Washington Post reporter Dan Balz • Analyzing our favorite moment of politics between Barack Obama and the Republican Party, yesterday’s steel-cage death match at the Republican compound in Baltimore. A Q&A session between the president and the party that has made his life hell over the last year, Obama came out FAR ahead at the end of it, pointing out some of the dirtier political tricks he’s seen and effectively beating down their talking points. The fact that it aired on national TV made the barbs even more impressive. The question is, will the talk have a lasting effect or is it just a really good moment of levity? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Jan 2010 17:41

tags

Music: Our Saturday Mixtape plays Delilah with your soft-rock favorites

  • We know, we know. This isn’t the indie rock that we usually put in this space, but after listening to Phil Collins again earlier this week, we felt it was high time to give into our guilty pleasures. Julius is extra guilty about the Cutting Crew, by the way. Here’s this week’s list:

  • 1. “Against All Odds,” this song is a stone-cold classic. Somehow, a song drenched in cheese and epic hugeness like this Phil Collins classic became something of a cultural touchstone, and Collins himself – a drummer for one of the weirdest bands of the ’70s, Genesis – a pop star of the MTV era. In the process, he also neutered Genesis, but you can’t win ’em all.
  • 2. Cutting Crew just died in our arms. We were trying to resuscitate them, but for some reason the crew wouldn’t move anymore. The band, strangely enough, is still around, although nobody knows any of their songs besides this one.
  • 3. It’s pretty funny that Todd Rundgren, that oddball of ’70s rock, started out his career sounding like a Carole King wannabe. (OK, he did have a couple of years in the Nazz, but that doesn’t count.) He hasn’t been this remotely good since, not even when he released a song called “I Hate My Frickin’ ISP” back in 2000.
  • 4. Everything about 10cc doesn’t suggest this song. The airy pop of “I’m Not In Love” is kind of an anomaly in the band’s career. They were an art-rock band through and through, with periods (before this hit) of playing bubblegum pop and (after this hit) creating some early music video breakthroughs – both under different names.
  • 5. Hall & Oates is the cheese-pop band of choice for indie rockers, with its pop-drenched Philly soul somehow standing out above the fray from its era. Sure, it’s dated, but the falsettos on “Sara Smile” are less dated than Michael Bolton and Richard Marx.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Jan 2010 11:48

tags

World: Giant photos are starting to take over other papers’ Web sites

  • The Boston Globe’s “Big Picture” feature is awesome. So we’re glad to see other papers, such as the Sacramento Bee, try the idea out. This is from the Machu Picchu citadel flooding and mudslides in Peru. Very dramatic. And much bigger at their site. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Jan 2010 11:37

tags

World: Russia’s chopping off a bunch of arms to give to Libya

  • $1.8 billion in arms goes directly to the Libyans source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink
 

30 Jan 2010 11:25

tags

Biz: Designers, photographers say creation’s a decimated market

  • Seemingly overnight, a publisher who wanted a picture of a sunset could choose from thousands on any number of databases. Why pay a photographer hundreds, or thousands, of dollars to go out and shoot a new one?
  • L.A. Times columnist James Rainey • Regarding the change in the graphic design and photography freelance market, which has led to people not being able to make a living wage in the business. With the rise of lower budgets and outsourcing and sites like iStockPhoto, it’s just not reasonable for many to make a career out of selling their content anymore. Which sucks for people who rely on the work. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Jan 2010 11:05

tags

Tech: Flash’s latest argument against the iPad: Hardcore porn

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Jan 2010 10:44

tags

Biz: In the wake of Toyota’s recalls, Honda has a few cars to recall, too

  • 646,000 Fits are unfit to use source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
top tags
older >>