Crazier and crazier

This weekend, Italian PM Sylvio Berlusconi was smacked in the face with a "spiky" tourist souvenir model of the Milan, I think it was, Duomo. Last night, a different young man was apprehended after he nearly got to Berlusconi's hospital room. Police are being vague about what he had in mind, but he was apparently mentally disturbed and a Berlusconi supporter (not incompatible states, as far as I can tell.) But what I found most remarkable about it all (aside from the complete incompetence of Italian security forces) was the following:

"A search of the man's parked car found "hockey sticks and kitchen knives," the official said, but the man apparently plays hockey. He will be cited for transporting the knives without justification, the official said."

But not for the hockey sticks, since he obviously had justification for that. I think I'm going to swear off making fun of the French.

Here's to ya

Everyone, right and left, who doesn't understand the following phrase:

Si vis pacem, parati para bellum

Astonishing, how a little classical education can help you understand your president.

Naval Nomenclature

Linda and I were reading in the sunlight yesterday, about Picasso and the role of naval power in the Mediterranean, respectively, and in the course of trading snippets of what we encounter (as is our wont,) came up with the following footnote to the course of military taxonomy.

Apparently the British had trouble thinking of good names for all their destroyers. My book mentioned, among many others, HMS Lookout, obviously one of the famous "Warning" class, which also included HMS Holy Shit, HMS Duck and Cover, HMS AIEEEE, and HMS Hey, guys, watch this!

Perhaps unintentional irony

There's a story getting some play in the last 24 hours, based on a "new ideas" post on the New Geography blog at the New York Times, saying the best thing to do with Detroit is turn it into farm land. Leaving aside the brownfield issues that might raise, it has some merit (I have, after all, proposed turning the abandoned Georgetown Shopping Center into an urban chicken farm.) But the irony comes in with the quote published by Sheena Harrison in the Mlive article about it all that "... the people are almost literally hearkening back to the formative days of the Midwest frontier, when pioneer settlers faced horrible conditions, tough odds, and often severe deprivation..."

The preceding article in Mlive's Detroit coverage is headed, "Detroit police investigating Sunday drive-by, seeking four suspects armed with shotgun, AK-47." Sounds more like Kabul than the Midwest.

So, you're a dictator ...

... and you've decided to write a book. What you really want is a forward from a universally - admired and beloved leader, say, Nelson Mandela, that praises you. "Get me some of that," you tell your ghost writers. But Mandela isn't accepting any such requests anymore. No problem, just write it for him. Save him the trouble, and all that.

It's official

Voting Republican is bad for your health.

Just in time for holiday giving

A real time mockery of Palin's new book.

If I have time, I'll compile a more comprehensive list of this year's must-have gifts. Stand by.

Kung Fu Kuisine!

If you have any of the following attributes:

• A fondness for Chinee-movie-Kung-Fu (which, I admit, I do not possess)
  
• Enthusiasm for what looks like really good Pac-rim food
  
• Interest in do-it-yourself promotional video
  

Check out the Kill Soup Dumpling video on the website of Joe's Shanghai Restaurants. Inspired silliness, probably driven by threatened consumer lawsuits.

Remember, "never bite into a hot soup dumpling!"

Some science news

I've been slacking off on posts lately, so here are a few recent developments in the world of science, in lieu of actually writing anything myself:

• Lower Paleolithic knife skills: "(The implication is) ... that either one person from the clan butchered the group's meat in a few episodes over time, or multiple persons hacked away at it in tandem," says Prof. Avi Gopher.
  
• Dogs won't take your word for it when you say "It's OK, Spot, don't worry about the thunder!" But they do seem to like having other dogs around.
  
• Like venal psychiatrists, scientists have managed to give flies false memories of bad things happening to them.
  
• Chimps will pass the crescent wrench, when asked, but so far, not without being asked, it says here.
  
• A kakapo gets cuddly; rare parrot assaults photographer while journalist stands by snickering. (Parental discretion advised.)
  
• The solar system has a wall, perhaps to keep out riff-raff. Note that Science News can't seem to decide whether it's talking about the solar system (article) or the galaxy (headline.)
  

And an older piece that I'd meant to bring to your attention, but didn't.

• Escalation in the on-going war between hikers and bears. I love this.
  

And finally, ponder this: I saw something recently along the lines of "everything is an invasive species, at one time or another, actual damage done by invasive species isn't all that much proportionately, don't worry about it ..." Can't find the reference now, unfortunately, but in counter balance to it, this alarmingly-named article was running in a number of places just today. I think I'll keep on worrying, personally.

Full disclosure

Recently, news media have reported a new FTC ruling that requires disclosure of payments to bloggers. Since I have a life-long personal commitment to openness in communication, I feel called upon to make the following statement.

Since the early 1980s, I have been paid amounts that, in sum, are in excess of one hundred seventy-four million dollars ($174,000,000) by a number of organizations, including The campaign to re-elect Turkmenbashi, the publishers of Sarah Palin's new book, Tata Motors, and TGI Friday's Worldwide, in return for NOT talking about them.

With this post, these agreements are terminated, and I'll be returning the money.