Nothing is sacred… not even our diets. Well that’s what some people think. The recent case of the Vegan mom from Queens will probably just add fuel to the flames.

These posters are really great. I think they exemplify, in a real emotional way, the feelings of a country in it’s boundless steps forward. Unfortunately, artistic renderings of society tend to emphasize the good days…

[Geisha Asobi]

North Korea has declared it will not follow the miserable fate of Iraq by making concessions over it’s Nuclear program.

Curious times indeed…

It seems that although we conclude that hacking is bad, in some cases we condone it.

Howard Bloom is one of the most fundamentally paradigm shattering writers I’ve read in years. The last writers who busted open my brain this way were Robert Anton Wilson and Peter Lamborn Wilson aka Hakim Bey.

Wired has a piece by Howard Bloom one of my favorite writers and thinkers, responsible for a book called The Global Brain.

According to my friend Gunnar’s site OnePeople, this war may be over oil, but not how you think.

Personally, I always suspect conspiracies like these, but it’s good to see substantiation.

If you’ve never heard of Harisu, take a good look. Incredibly, she was a he at birth, believe it or not!

She’s got a new book out.

The Guardian has an excellent piece asking a very pertinent question. Five US POW’s are marched in front of Iraqi TV and Rumsfeld complains it’s against the geneva convention. The question of the day, what about Guantanamo Bay?

In 1907, Professor Kikunae Ikeda began thinking about foods and flavor. He said “There is a taste which is common to asparagus, tomatoes, cheese and meat but which is not one of the four well-known tastes of sweet, sour, bitter and salty.”

Yumiko Kayukawa is a Japanese artist from the northern island of Saporo. Her works evoke cuteness with a twist. love me and fuujin.

Here’s a strange one. Apparently Saddam Hussein donated hundreds of thousands to a church in detroit, and was given the “key to the church”. Just shows you how much the US/Iraqi relationship has changed since the 80’s.

Here’s an interesting site asking, if “war is peace, freedom is slavery - ignorance is strength… is it 2002 or 1984?” A good question indeed.

Archeologists have trouble talking about cannibalism because it is one topic which strikes most derision, and horror in most people. But actually there is a long and varied tradition among the human community.

If you look at this insightful site, you might start to ask yourself questions about the WTO. If we’re going to have World trade, where everyday items are made in China, Mexico, and perhaps even France, how can you really boycott their products. And what would it mean to do so? Do we just extend are distaste, and scream and holler, or do we implement a consistent policy of screening products for their French/non-French origins??

In times like these when our favorite American foods are being renamed, the makers of the American brand of mustard French’s felt the need to clarify that they’re not French.

Believe it or not the Williamsburg Bridge incident on Friday seems to have affected world currencies.

Thanks SuperG.

If you haven’t been hiding under a rock, you probably already realise that libraries aren’t what they were. Booksellers have protested, and libraries are getting just plain pissed-on. Even states are getting pissed off!

And you thought the stuff you bought in your Ramen store of choice was fancy. Here’s how stuff should really look like.

Orwell’s disinformation (was it he who invented that?) is getting thicker and denser than any of us thought possible. With erasure of the past, just five or ten years ago, who can remember who armed Iraq and for that matter, who’s doing the arming these days.

Wow… I guess I’ve been living under a rock. If you get the travesty here, you’ll be amused by the headline. It seems some chicks will do just about anything to afford the latest fashions. Unusual, or a sign of curious times?

With all my bitching, moaning, and criticising about erosion of freedoms, and government abuses, I think I sometimes miss the very legitimate anger and fear people are feeling these days.

This incredible picture shows the other lady liberty in Bordeaux, France after being set afire, with painted red tears running from her poor eyes.

I imagine the discovery of the microscope, and later the electron microscope was met with such fascination and bewilderment as all these new Star formations we’re seeing in the news lately.

Strange but true, the art of Mark Ryden consists largely of little girls holding their own heads in their hands, and other weirdness.

[boingboing]

You thought freedom fries and banning French wine was bad enough.

In the face of all this news about curbed freedoms I can’t help but wonder what all these New Hampshire-ites must be planning.

What exactly does the philosophy Live Free or Die dictate, in times like these?

Here’s one for the conspiracy books. Even in the face of screwing you out of your rights, the big boys are getting off scott free. Apparently Kearny NJ has a big chemicals plant. So big in fact that if any of them bad guys get through the hands of National Security, this target could take out millions.

In our growing tradition of quiz and multiple choice pieces here’s a new one that asks How Evil Are You?

[Tales from the City]

You probably never thought of chopstick wrappers as art. This page brings it all into perspective. I’m so glad they’re arranged by color, and design. It really helps me struggle with the myriad of types, styles and…

[Geisha Asobi]

Found this excellent site Ancient Scripts which begins to explain languages, and their relationships. Just looking at what they have for Japanese makes me realize this site is comprehensive.