Posts from the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

It’s THROW DOWN time!

There’s a lot of people who assume that the line in my bio about being an international-class pro Rock Paper Scissors referee is a witty bon mot. But last time I checked, wry web-irony didn’t come with one’s own trading card. My favourite weeked of the year is here as it’s once again time for the 2008 World Championships of Rock Paper Scissors… sorry I guess that’s the Yahoo! 2008 World Championships of Rock Paper Scissors (whew).

I’m not sure I could even begin to go into my shady history with the infamous World Rock Paper Scissors Society, but suffice it to say – there are certain… acts… that in retrospect would have made everyone’s live’s easier had I done them under a nom de guerre. Read more

So Sad When We Lose a Good One to the Allure of Animal Retail

I love Banksy, you love Banksy, we all love Banksy… so I was very saddened to learn he’s put down his spray-can and gotten out of the art game to open a pet store in New York.

On the other hand, the store he’s opened is the Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill – so at least it’s delicious and educational.

Enjoy your new career Banksy.

Got less sense than a cat’s got hoofs!

A commenter over at Mike Sterling’s Something Or Other hipped me to the candy gab of Jerry on the Job, a delightful essay by James Lileks (of Gallery of Regrettable Food fame).

Such wonders you will see therein! Thrill to Lileks short stack of thick thought on this forgotten master of the comic-strip flip-take. PEOPLE WILL BE BLOWN OVER ON ACCOUNT OF THE PERIOD-APPROPRIATE LAFFS!

Rock the (Canadian) Vote!

Remember fellow Canucks – no matter your party of preference – simply by going to your local polls today you can accomplish many exciting goals:

• Show Sean Combs that we don’t actually need the threat of physical violence to excercise our democratic rights.
• Support the concept of policy and platform being important issues to discuss in federal politics!
• Possibly effect the outcome of a race that’s actually much more exciting for almost all involved parties than it looked like it was going to be
• One again quietly set an example for our louder, more bombastic, brethren to the South that it is possible to hold an entire federal election (from start to finish) in 38 days.

Don’t know where your local polling station is? Just click here, and I’ll see you at the polls!

Jay Rosen on Journalistic Responsibility and Blogger Ethics

Noted media smart-guy and NYU journalisim professor Jay Rosen’s gotten a fair amount of play in the US political blogs lately by asking some really inventive questions about what the responsibilities of journalistic “fairness” are given the recent scenario where the GOP has tried to entirely discredit entire sectors of the media.

In a follow-up from last week Rosen also (correctly) posits how in trying to adopt some kind of notion of journalistic parity in any wildly asymmetric environment – you actually introduce bias via a false mean. Read more

Let’s Google like it’s 1999… plus two!

This is very cool. As part of their 10th anniversay, Google has brought back a clone of their 2001 search index. See what the hot web-content of the day way seven years ago! Apparently I was really interested in signing some kind of Star Control petition? Why? No idea! Ah well at least I had my priorities in order.

On the wisdom of crowds

after last weeks Batman story I got an e-mail grilling me on why I have a rule to not see movies on the opening weekend.

As the individual pointed out, I not only advocate going to the theatre generally (watching movies in large groups is a profoundly different experience than doing so at home), but I had actually chastised him in the past for not going to see certain movies on opening weekend (because the opening weekend gross often determines if small films last more than the opening weekend).

An aside: If you are a Canadian, and like Canadian films (or aren’t sure if you like Canadian films because you can never find any in your local multiplex) go join the First Weekend Club. Not only will you get notified when cool domestic films open near you, there may be the occasional cool freebie in your future. Just saying.

To clarify this seeming hypocracy, my rule is: No Hollywood Studio Films on Opening Weekend. Ever.. Read more