randomwalks/dj

Kenny Shopsin, the proprietor of NYC institution Shopsin's, is coming out with a cookbook. Eat Me: The Food and Philosophy of Kenny Shopsin is out in September.

(link)

Originally posted by jason@kottke.org from kottke.org, on May 24, 2008 2:14 PM

Examiner column for May 26.

    Students often remember their teachers, but teachers remember students just as vividly. This is the case with a student from George Mason University whom I haven’t seen in nearly 25 years, but whose words on the Vietnam War I read every year to my classes.

    Of all the possible ways to remember those who have died in battle, Ed Cherry’s essay on the death of a Marine holds the most power for me.  Written shortly after the opening of the Vietnam Memorial on the Mall, the essay begins with Ed looking for the names of his lost buddies in vain, since he knew them only by nicknames. But one winter day, he recognizes the name of Wilfred Lynn Donaho, and then it all comes back to him.

    During the monsoons of 1969, Lynn was killed in a firefight, but the weather prevented him from being airlifted out. “We’d have to carry him out, and that’s what we did. We strapped him to a pole and began the long walk home, the walk Lynn would never make.”

    On Day 5 when Ed’s company had to negotiate a steep cliff in the rain, they tried to lower Lynn with ropes made out of vines. The vines broke, and they watched in horror as Lynn tumbled to the bottom.
 
    “I cried in Vietnam, more than once, but I never cried in front of anyone until that day. We wept for ourselves, for what we were putting ourselves through, we wept for Lynn, for what we were putting him through, and I think we wept for every soldier in Vietnam.”

    They continued to carry Lynn out, and Ed “wanted to remember every detail of that operation,” yet he, like other Vietnam veterans, returned to the U.S. and put his experiences behind him. He felt disconnected from that jungle trek until the day when he found and touched Lynn’s name on The Wall.

    “Not only did The Wall radiate the life of the dead, it seemed to beat with the pulse of Lynn, and the pulse shook The Wall and every man and woman it represents, and The Wall was alive. And I was more alive than I ever had been since I came home. I finally remembered, and I was finally alive. God bless you, Lynn. God bless you.”

    Ed’s essay has moved hundreds of my students, and helped them understand how war shapes those lucky enough to return. Each year I marvel at its undiminished power.

    Just as touching Lynn’s name brought Ed to life that day in January, his essay brings to life a war we often try to forget, but must not forget. It brings to life the sacrifices many made, and the contradictions that made the war an enigma.

    Teachers are only as good as the material they teach, and often that means we must let another’s words do the teaching. Ed’s essay holds as much classroom power today as it did twenty years ago and is always met with a stunned silence. For me as well as my students, Ed’s memories of Lynn keep the meaning of Memorial Day alive.

Originally posted by Erica Jacobs from TeacherTalk, on May 23, 2008 5:26 PM

I recently happened upon Khoi Vinh’s post concerning the relationship between studio size and quality of design.

It pleased me.

Mike and I founded Mule coming out of the expansionist 90s. We experienced what happened when design teams became ever larger and agencies accumulated talent like client-services Katamari.

Great design emerges from the right combination of individuals working together to solve a problem. Interpersonal chemistry is staggeringly significant and individuals are not interchangeable.

Design studios should have a voice, and the more people you add, the more dilute that voice becomes, the more serviceable and bland. Simultaneously, it becomes more difficult to guarantee the same high standard of work, as Khoi points out.

So, now, as we anticipate entering into our own phase of growth, cautiously, and with trepidation, we seek the Mules that may already be out there in the world, ready to team up.

Mule Design is hiring!

Originally posted by erika from Mule Design : Off the Hoof, on May 23, 2008 2:26 PM

Hi, my name is Fred Benenson and I’m Creative Commons’ Cultural Program Associate working in New York City. I’ll be blogging about and working on all things CC in the Big Apple. Without further ado, I’m happy to announce that the eighth annual Media that Matters Film Festival is about to begin in downtown Manhattan. The festival showcases shorts created by young filmmakers and releases them after the festival under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license. Arts Engine, the non-profit that organizes and hosts the festival also sells region-free unencrypted CC licensed DVDs of all the films that can be shown in any non-commercial setting.

A description of the festival from The Media That Matters site:

From gay rights to global warming, the jury-selected collection represents the work of a diverse group of independent filmmakers, many of whom are under 21. The films are equally diverse in style and content, with documentaries, music videos, animations, experimental work and everything else in between. What all the films have in common is that they spark debate and action in 12 minutes or less.

A short from the sixth Media That Matters film festival, “A Girl Like Me” made its way on to Oprah’s television show, and has since racked up almost a million views on YouTube. Check out previous MTM festivals online here and here.  The premier of all the shorts from MTM 8 will be happening on Wednesday, May 28th at the IFC Center in Manhattan, so buy your tickets now.

Originally posted by Fred Benenson from Creative Commons » CC News, on May 23, 2008 2:14 PM

Filed under: Video, Developer, Found Footage

Over at Theocacao Scott Stevenson has posted the video of his Introduction to Cocoa talk (entitled "Best of Both Worlds") aimed at those who want to learn a bit about Apple's preferred API for building OS X applications. The talk runs to over 90 minutes and includes "an introduction to Xcode, Interface Builder, Objective-C, Mac UI standards and more."

For anyone who has ever wanted to figure out what those developers tools are all about this is definitely worth (the rather large) download (scroll down towards the bottom) though it seems that a lot of folks are have problems getting the whole file (myself included). There's also a torrent available.

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Originally posted by Mat Lu from The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW), on May 23, 2008 2:00 PM

Rave review of the Kindle by Justin Blanton, who is a gadget freak of the first order.

I love the Kindle, and totally see myself using and enjoying it (and its progeny) for many years to come. I'm reading more because of it, and seriously doubt I'll ever read a paper book again.

It still looks like the Pontiac Aztek of e-readers but it solves one of the things I dislike about reading in bed:

One of the nicest things about the Kindle, and something that is inherent in such a device, is that, unlike a regular book, its orientation and weight aren't constantly shifting. With a paper book, you are made to move [it] around as you shift from the left to the right page, flip pages, etc. With the Kindle however, all of that shifting disappears and you can hold your chosen position indefinitely.

Such a "feature" generally allows you to expend less energy when reading. For example, I like reading in bed while lying on my side. With a paper book you have to constantly hold the book to keep it open and to move it slightly depending on whether you're reading the right or left page; with the Kindle, you can just let it rest on the bed and then tap the next-page button as needed. I realize that this may sound like a trivial thing to devote a paragraph to, but it really is amazing how such a device can change the way you read, or make the way you're used to reading that much better.

As Justin notes, Kindles are back in stock at Amazon.

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Originally posted by jason@kottke.org from kottke.org, on May 23, 2008 1:30 PM

New York Governor David Paterson has granted Slick Rick, né Ricky Walters, a pardon for the 1990 shooting of his cousin and an innocent bystander. The pardon may finally put a halt to the repeated attempts to deport the British-born rapper that began after his release from jail in 1997 and dragged on through numerous appeals and his arrest by the INS in the summer of 2002 upon returning to Florida on a cruise ship. Federal statutes mandate the deportation of alien felons but today's pardon should allow Walters to remain in the US.

Originally posted by (author unknown) from PAPERMAG: WORD UP!, on May 23, 2008 11:57 AM

If you need proof that Cooks.com lets anyone submit recipes:

Wiener water soup

1 pkg. wieners
3 c. water

Combine wieners and water in a two quart saucepan. Bring to a boil until wieners are cooked. Throw the wieners in the garbage. Serve soup. Serves 3.

The NYC hot dog vendors should think about branching out into soup. (via serious eats)

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Originally posted by jason@kottke.org from kottke.org, on May 23, 2008 11:57 AM

This one if for all of my fellow Twin Peaks dorks. If for some reason you haven't heard of Twin Peaks first read this and then go to amazon and buy this.


Kyle MacLachlan - "Diane... The Twin Peaks Tapes Of Agent Cooper"
Download It

Originally posted by Damn Those Blood Suckers from Damn Those Blood Suckers And Their Good Qualities, on May 23, 2008 10:38 AM

In commercials for Domino's Pizza, the chain's employees wage a never ending battle against the Noid, a gremlin who delays deliveries and carries a gun that can turn a pizza ice cold. Many viewers are amused by the Noid, Domino's says, but one of them took the advertising campaign personally. Last week Kenneth Noid, 22, walked into a Domino's Pizza shop in Chamblee, Ga., with a .357 Magnum revolver and took two employees hostage. When police arrived, he demanded $100,000 in cash, a getaway car and a copy of The Widow's Son, a 1985 novel about secret societies in an 18th century Parisian prison.

All Noid got was the pizza he ordered. After a five-hour siege, the two employees slipped away and Noid gave himself up. According to police, Noid has "psychological problems" and believes that he has an "ongoing dispute with Tom Monaghan," the head of the Detroit-based Domino's chain.

Time Magazine, you're making that shit up. (via lonelysandwich)

(link)

Originally posted by jason@kottke.org from kottke.org, on May 23, 2008 10:33 AM

During a meeting with the editorial board of the Argus Leader, Hillary appeared to accuse the Obama campaign of being behind the story CNN aired today reporting that there are "talks" between the two campaigns about her getting out of the race and possibly becoming veep.

"That's flatly untrue -- flatly, completely untrue," Hillary said when asked about "reports" of such talks. The edit board meeting is being aired live, and is still underway.

"No discussions at all," Hillary continued. "It is not anything I'm entertaining. It is nothing I've planned. It is nothing I'm prepared to engage in."

Both campaigns denied the story earlier today.

A bit later, Hillary added: "This is part of an ongoing effort to end this before it's over."

Later still, Hillary brought the hammer down: "I would look to the camp of my opponent for the source of those stories," she said.

So much for a non-aggression pact as the race draws to a close.

Late Update: It should be pointed out that the CNN story actually is explicitly sourced to people in Clinton's inner circle. What's more, Hillary's top finance chair today pushed the idea of her as veep.

Originally posted by Greg Sargent from TPM Election Central, on May 23, 2008 10:26 AM

Look at all the lovely things Gamasutra has to say about Heather Kelley, whom we all know is one of the top 20 women in the videogame industry.

I always thought the Gamasutra 20 was the weight you gain after your first year in the industry (damn you snack bar!). Live and learn.

Originally posted by cloo from Kokoromi Collective, on May 23, 2008 8:35 AM

Peter Parasol #2 went live this week and features poems that, in very different ways, are inspired by or interact with an artwork by S. Lariviere.  The piece "The Gasp Mechanism" is a vibrant hybrid of tapestry, quilt and collage.  Bits of text and images come together through what seems to be a very spontaneous and intuitive process.  But cutting and stitching these materials also take time, and I began to wonder how these "pauses" determined the placement of certain elements.  In Bobbi Lurie's poem, the speaker observes that "the material of a painting allows the brain another region to believe in."  This is beautifully stated.  There is a long standing, productive exchange between the visual arts and poetry.  In "The Gasp Mechanism," for instance, the visibility of the seams and the way in which ribbons created internal frames sparked new ways of thinking of line, break and juxtaposition in poetry.

My contribution to this issue is a poem titled "Mechanism" (and includes an audio reading of the poem).  I didn't set out to describe the piece but rather to take certain visual juxtapositions and see what could happen to them in the "blank" space of the poem.  Somehow this fused with the myth of Cassandra.  The image that appears in this post is a snapshot of one of my favorite details, "the rooster becomes a scythe."

Peter Parasol is currently accepting submissions for issue #3.

Originally posted by Adriana from Stingy Kids, on May 23, 2008 8:14 AM

Rarely do the two chief campaign flacks, Howard Wolfson and Bill Burton, agree. But they both tell TPM Election Central that CNN's report this morning that there are formal talks between the Clinton and Obama campaigns over her dropping out of the race and getting the VP nod are "100% false."

Now that doesn't necessarily mean there aren't some sort of back-channel communications going on. I'd be surprised if there weren't. These people aren't strangers to each other. They've all been involved together in Democratic politics for a long time. They talk. But as I said before, I'm skeptical that these discussion amount to anything approaching "formal talks."

At the same time, I don't doubt that CNN had what it considered to be well-placed Clinton sources feeding them these various scenarios for how the VP selection will play out and what her role might be. As I said before, it's noteworthy in itself that some elements of Clinton's supporters are making these kinds of noises.

In fact, Hillary's top fundraiser, Hassan Nemazee, in an interview with TPM Election Central today, may have gone as far anyone in the Clinton camp thus far in essentially demanding she get the vice presidential nomination -- or else:

"[T]here's a risk that if she isn't invited on the ticket, Hillary's political and financial supporters may not feel compelled to be as integrated and involved in the Obama campaign in order to provide the maximum support that he'll need to prevail in November."

If she does get out of the race before the convention -- which I think is still the most plausible scenario -- it will be only after extensive negotiations over all manner of issues, political as well as personal. Today's rumblings may just be the start to those negotiations. And as any good negotiator knows, your opening position better be as favorable to you as possible and then some.

Originally posted by David Kurtz from Talking Points Memo, on May 23, 2008 7:59 AM

Screen is a full-screen window manager for the console, that comes with every flavour of Linux and UNIX. It is best known for multiplexing a physical terminal across several processes. By using it, you can run any number of console-based applications within a single terminal.

Originally posted by (author unknown) from All about Linux, on May 23, 2008 7:04 AM

happy memorial day weekend! [via]

Originally posted by (author unknown) from the real janelle, on May 23, 2008 6:32 AM

Filed under: Cult of Mac, Odds and ends

MacMinute was one of my favorite Mac news sites, so it was with some sadness that I saw that its founder, Stan Flack, died back in April. The site has been quiet for a while, and now Flack's family has announced that they have decided to shut down the venerable Mac news site after serious efforts to keep it going fell through.

Flack founded MacMinute back in 2001 not long after selling his original Mac news site MacCentral to Macworld in 1999. It is with respect that we at TUAW note the passing of this pioneer of the Mac web and add our condolences to many others out there among the community of Mac centered sites.

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Originally posted by Mat Lu from The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW), on May 23, 2008 6:30 AM

Unlike the US government, Hasbro lets you print out your own Monopoly money. There are PDFs for 1,5,10,20,50,100, and 500 dollar bills.

(link)

Originally posted by jason@kottke.org from kottke.org, on May 23, 2008 6:02 AM

• Congress Gives Oil Execs a Tongue Lashing Over Fuel Prices (NYT)
• $4/Gal Gas Weakens Ford and American Auto Industry (NYT)
• Rep. James Oberstar Tweaks Federal Transit Funding Formula (GGW)
• Bloomberg: Growth in Ridership May Be More Than Transit System Can Handle (AMNY)
  
• Double-Decker Buses Coming Back to Fifth Avenue (AMNY, Post, NYT)
• G Train Riders Ask for Better Service (NYT)
• MTA Board Approves Hudson Yards Deal (News, NYT)
• Nassau Exec Suozzi Vows to Crack Down on DWI (News)
• Why Sidewalk Water Fountains Would Work in NYC (NYT)
• Brooklyn Bridge, 125 Years Old, May Become More Transit-Oriented (News, NY1)
  

Originally posted by Ben Fried from Streetsblog, on May 23, 2008 4:58 AM

I'm really, really busy this week so I thought I'd look for a pattern picture that also had a lot going on. But the more I look at this one, the more I can't figure out what the heck is going on here (and the more I like this dress).

First off, it's rare for there to be a random guy in a pattern picture. (For all that people think the clothes of the 1950s were all about dressing for me, you'd think that there'd be more blatantly goggling men in the pattern pictures.) And what is this Random Guy doing? Is he painting or drawing the model? If so, why does the model in the picture have a completely different hairstyle and different sleeves? Is it really a picture, or a door opening from another dimension, from whence Bad Fuchsia Dress lady has come to wreak havoc? Or is she saving her past self from the predations of Random Guy (who also has a chandelier of some sort growing out of his ears, he should have that taken care of), wearing a similar dress to reassure herself? [Making note: if ever need come from the future to save my past self, wear favorite clothes to project air of trustworthiness.]

And, perhaps most puzzlingly: where's the other legs of the chair? And why isn't it falling over, since PastSelf/LongSleeveLady is putting some weight on it?

Only questions, with no answers. Can anyone help?

(If you want the pattern, not answers, click on the image to visit the eBay auction.)

Originally posted by Erin from A Dress A Day, on May 23, 2008 3:53 AM

Michelle Williams returned to the red carpet for the first time since Heath Ledger's passing. She looked absolutely stunning as she promoted her new film Wendy and Lucy.

A rep for the movie told People:

""It was decided on Monday night that she could come to Cannes, and she got on the next plane to arrive just in time to get dressed and come to our premiere. She came in and had a long nap and then came to the screening."

Michelle then stayed in Cannes to promote a second movie she's appearing in, Synedoche, New York. Next she's flying to Boston to continue filming a Martin Scorsese flick.

Good for Michelle. She looks beautiful and is staying busy. We only wish the best for her!

P.S. Hi all -- Jacki here. Tracy's off for the day, but don't worry - she'll be back next week :)

Originally posted by Jaclyn Garfinkel from iVillage - Daily Blabber, on May 23, 2008 3:44 AM

brooklyn bridge fireworks. (via yatta)

I was on the Q train back to Brooklyn when all of a sudden, the fireworks for the 125th Anniversary of the Brooklyn Bridge began. The conductor stopped the train and everyone watched the fireworks from the windows. My favorite part was when the woman sitting next to me, angry b/c I had accidentally sat on her coat when I got on board, turned to me, pointed out the window and said “Look! A happy face!”

Originally posted by (author unknown) from Final Boss Form, on May 22, 2008 7:26 PM

Last Christmas, Adaptive Path participated in the OLPC program. Today, fifteen OLPC laptops sit in a storage room here in San Francisco and with the recent panning in the press, I’m not all together sure what we are gonna do with those little computers.

While I agree with a lot of what is being written about OLPC’s shortcomings, I can’t help but feel it’s going to the easy “pot-shot” place. Sure, OLPC’s goal of providing technology access to impoverished children was lofty and probably unattainable. Yes, it was a product designed from a cultural perspective misaligned to the culture and context of the people it was designed for and ultimately failed to meet it’s own creative brief. Yes, it’s difficult to not to get a little irritated by the arrogance of the perspective from which this product was made, especially when it won so many design awards.

OLPC was a failure - but don’t products fail all the time?

In light of all the discourse on the shortcomings of the product, there seems to be little said on the things that OLPC accomplished that were interesting. It’s not often that one sees a product that reframes the conceptual model of the operating system. If anything, Sugar was gutsy and interesting in that regard. OLPC also made it out into the world into people’s hands – it wasn’t a pet project cooked up in a research lab, whose only outputs were a couple academic papers and patent filings. Most of all, I believe OLPC at heart had a virtuous Buddha nature. It was created on the belief that people can improve their lives with technology and the desire to increase access to technology throughout the world.

Failure is part of the creative process and yet when we scathe each other on our individual failings, we make it difficult for people in our industry to take the creative risks necessary to push design and technology forward. By focusing so firmly on failure, we aren’t able to see the beautiful by-product failure brings – learning. OLPC was a failure, but there were some cool things about it… and most importantly, it succeeded in giving us something concrete to learn from.

If we head for the ash heap of history, there are countless examples of failures that were necessary in order to realize a dream in the areas of science, transportation and technology. We wouldn’t get on airplanes today if Orville and Wilbur wouldn’t have had the courage to continually fail at Kitty Hawk. Without Apple Newton’s failure, we probably wouldn’t have had the Palm Pilot or the iPhone. Perhaps like the Apple Newton and the Wright Brother’s early flyers, OLPC will be remembered as one of the colossal failures necessary to bridge the digital divide.

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Originally posted by Rachel Hinman from Adaptive Path, on May 22, 2008 5:54 PM

We hear that actress/director Asia Argento is pregnant with her second child, thanks to her new husband, filmmaker/long-time Sean Lennon collaborator Michele Civetta. Woo!

Originally posted by (author unknown) from PAPERMAG: WORD UP!, on May 22, 2008 3:05 PM

world food crisis indicator: my wine shop’s $10 & under table now has a $12 & under section.

Originally posted by (author unknown) from the real janelle, on May 22, 2008 2:09 PM

As small, socially responsible businesses gain attention, some large corporations start to take notice, and in some cases take over (See, for example, Ben & Jerry’s, Tom’s of Maine and Burt’s Bees.)

To help companies maintain their morals in the face of corporate takeovers, and to attract socially responsible investors and consumers, a nonprofit called B Lab has created B Corporation, where the 'B' stands for beneficial (to the business, public and environment).

B Corporation is a certification for business that are “purpose-driven” and that want to create benefits for all stakeholders (employees, the community, the environment, ect.), not just shareholders. And in a time when every business wants to at least look like they’re going green, this certification could be essential for socially responsible investors and consumers who are trying to differentiate “good companies” from “good marketing.”

The certification was created to help companies interested in the triple bottom line have the best of both –profit worlds. As a “for-purpose” business, B Corporations can reach beyond the capital limitations of the nonprofit world, and also the constraints of having to appease shareholders or investors as a for-profits.

In the words of B Corporation’s co-creator Jay Coen Gilbert:

"We are witnessing the birth of a new sector of the economy between the private sector and the nonprofit sector," Coen Gilbert told the SF Chronicle. "Our grandchildren will be talking about this new sector the way we talk about the nonprofit sector. ... Eventually it will be 5, 7, 10 percent of GDP. And unlike nonprofits, it will have the ability to scale up from there because it can attract capital. There will be a social stock exchange, lower capital gains taxes for investing in these companies, and government procurement preferences. All of that is going to happen - but for it to happen, we need to create some standards.”

And what he means by creating standards is their certification system, which allows businesses to prove their intentions to operate in socially and environmentally responsible ways to investors and consumers.

“As a B Corporation, you differentiate your business from the growing barrage of green- and cause-marketing campaigns and stand out as a leader in the market, creating a clear path for others to follow,” states the organization. “You also embed your values into your corporate governing documents so they can survive new investors, new management and even new ownership.”

To become a certified B Corporation, applicants must score above 80 points on a 200 point test, and must amend their articles of incorporation to say that managers must consider the interests of employees, the community, and the environment instead of worrying solely about shareholders.

The SF Chronicle reports:

Method filled out B Lab's scorecard and received a grade of 128.7 out of 200, well over the passing score of 80.

Similarly, Numi Tea - which sells organic, fair trade teas from more than 25 countries - scored a 101.2 and became a B corporation.

Companies like Numi, Method and Give Something Back say they were attracted to the B corporation idea partly because of its potential to help them attract investment capital without jeopardizing their ideals.

Some are comparing the certification system to the LEED certification for green buildings or TransFair's certification of fair-trade businesses.

It will be interesting to watch as this certification gains popularity -- more than 100 businesses currently have B Corporations status, such as New Leaf Paper, Comet Skateboards and Dansko.

Will other organizations start labeling efforts? Will corporations try to gain certification for less than purpose-driven reasons (As this Inc.com article points out, corporations could score higher in social areas and lower in environmental stewardship and still make the cut.)? Will their amendments hold up in court?

As businesses continue to evolve to fit our demands for more social responsibility, only time will tell.

Help us change the world - DONATE NOW!

(Posted by Sarah Kuck in Business at 1:03 PM)

Originally posted by Sarah Kuck from WorldChanging, on May 22, 2008 1:03 PM

For being small, San Francisco has a lot of neighborhoods in its 7x7 miles. When I talked about moving to the Outer Sunset yesterday I forgot to link the Wikipedia page for the neighborhood.

And, to be accurate, we're actually going to be in Parkside.

Originally posted by torrez from Andre's Notes, on May 22, 2008 12:45 PM

OMFG. Now you have an infinitesimally better chance of getting that Momofuku Ko reservation you've been futilely refreshing your browser for every morning. The Ko will be open on Tuesdays, starting on May 27th, and natch, the resys for next week went in just a few seconds. Happy hunting people, and be on the lookout for lunch, set to debut within the next month or so.
· The Momo' Ko Obsession [~E~]

Originally posted by Amanda from Eater, on May 22, 2008 12:35 PM

jude really wants you to see this!

Originally posted by David Jacobs from hello, typepad, on May 22, 2008 12:04 PM

Filed under: Humor, iPhone

I purchased an iPhone during the refurb sale that AT&T had last week. In two working days I got my 16 gig iPhone, times two. Two identical boxes, two identical iPhones and two identical charges on my debit card. Given the good deal, I decided to keep both (yes, despite the impending update). Imagine my surprise when my wife called me at work the next day to report that a third box had arrived from AT&T via DHL 2-day shipping, and that it was twice the size of either of the iPhone boxes. Given the previous day's spoils, I couldn't wait to get home.

Arriving at my house, I located the box and sat down with it on the couch. It was very, very light, but I've become accustomed to good things not weighing much. Pulling out my trusty Swiss Tech Utili-Key, I carefully sliced open my unexpected delivery. Inside was a packing slip with a single line item:

75011 MISC iPhone PPA BAG ... $0.00

Yes, it was an unsolicited, rush delivery, plastic iPhone bag. This is definitely not a first for AT&T and the monetary waste involved in packing and shipping a completely unnecessary plastic bag is, I assume, passed back to the consumer. Next time you look at your AT&T bill, you can think about my MISC iPhone PPA BAG ... which I'll be cherishing forever. Or at least until the novelty wears off.

Gallery: iPhone PPA Bag unboxing

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Originally posted by Brett Terpstra from The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW), on May 22, 2008 12:00 PM

From Required Eating

Jane, an advertising account executive, documents a day of her life in brand logos in the form of her "Brand-Timeline Portrait" with some food-related bits here and there (although I assume the Whiskas is for her cat). My favorite part of her day is when the clock strikes 5:49: it's all about the beer and cigarettes. Would your daily brand-timeline portrait also include Jane's regulars of Quiznos, Pepsi, and Starbucks? [via neatorama]

Originally posted by Robyn Lee from Serious Eats, on May 22, 2008 12:00 PM

Originally posted by joshua mack from DefinitiveInk, on May 22, 2008 11:45 AM

Originally posted by (author unknown) from Monoscope, on May 22, 2008 11:44 AM

A semi-contrary view from one of our shrewdest readers ...

You argue that "the evidence is simply overwhelming that Sen. Clinton didn't think [that Florida and Michigan were] a problem at all." That's one way to read the factual record.

But I'd suggest that there are compelling reasons to reach the opposite conclusion. After the 2000 election, she called for the abolition of the electoral college. "I believe strongly," she said, "that in a democracy, we should respect the will of the people." She argued then that "the total votes cast for a person running for president in our country should
determine the outcome." Sound familiar?

Of course, as you point out, that's not what she or her supporters were arguing when the convoluted rules of the nominating system seemed likely to deliver her the nomination. And that, I think, is where she lost her bearings. She and her aides decided not to rock the boat. Instead of using their clout to fix the problems with the system, thereby alienating voters in states like Iowa and New Hampshire, she and her surrogates mouthed the same platitudes we hear every four years about the unique role played by
early states and the lovable quirks of the caucuses. But when the rules she had always disliked started to work against her, she lashed out with righteous indignation.

I think Hillary is genuinely convinced that this election has been a travesty. That elections ought to be about who wins the most votes, full stop. Never mind the innumerable problems with applying that argument to the contests this cycle; it's what she believes. And it's of a piece with a set of grievances that she and her surrogates have voiced: that the media has treated her too harshly, that her candidacy has been hobbled by sexism, and that her opponent has enjoyed unfair advantages. Each of these complaints
springs from a common premise - Hillary could not have lost a fair fight for the nomination. And working from that premise, she sees herself not only as a victim, but also as a champion of those who, like her, have been wronged by the system. This really has become a moral crusade for her, and that's impelling her forward long after she's lost any realistic chance of winning.

Perhaps she can be persuaded to back away from the edge. But now that the dictates of her conscience and of political expedience have at last converged, Hillary is finally giving voice to the grievances that she's long held back. As she's done so, she's tapped into a deep and powerful strain of resentment and - dare I say it - bitterness in the electorate. It's not easy to put that genie back in the bottle, and it's not at all clear to me that she wants to.

Originally posted by Josh Marshall from Talking Points Memo, on May 22, 2008 11:14 AM

I don't know about you, but this makes me really happy and frankly a bit excitable:


(via m,appeal)

Originally posted by Alice from Wonderland, on May 22, 2008 10:58 AM

Lucas finally does away with all those pesky human actors in an animated sequel to Episode II that no one was clamoring for. But I had to look at the trailer.

(link)

Originally posted by jason@kottke.org from kottke.org, on May 22, 2008 10:57 AM