Goodness that's an ugly buckle. It makes no sense at all.

SCOTTFREE, yeah, we know (well, I do) but there's mangled veggies, and veggies that are Shaped like Something. :D

I personally loathe those perfectly round tomatoes and EU-regulation carrots. It's the 'freaky' veggies that I buy at the market down the street.

The whole point of the precise tracking is so that it can calculate your fare, no? Call me naive but I doubt there's an ulterior motive. I love the Oyster card system, it saved me a bunch when I was in London.

My first Oyster card wore out in a week. The chip was showing through the plastic. I kept it in my pocket. But the friendly bus driver still let me get on and ride to the next underground station where I asked for a new card. Much love for that bus driver.

#18, mum used to buy that for my sister and me. That two-year old pixie ADORED it. When I recall the taste, I don't know why I ever agreed to have that in my sandwich. It did look good on a bun, though.

I always dug the eyes out, first, then the mouth, and played Hannibal Lecter with the remains. Om nom nom nom.

All I can say is... http://www.flickr.com/photos/cefeida/2451798969/

This bike is COOL. :D Trippy. Literally.

@Fsts, frgt t. ntns s xtrmly dfnsv f BB nd ts dtrs, ny tm smn mks th lst crtcsm h mks t pnt t tr thm nw n. t's jst wht h ds, t's lk trdmrk fr hm. wnt thrgh th xct sm rtn lst wk. Srsly, t's nt wrth yr tm.

Well, the bad quality of the photos just adds to the overall 'wtf' effect...

I say, yay for imagination.

#8 Word, if only that were an exaggeration...

I'm sure both the workers and the government were well aware. But the government doesn't care. They're making money- and as long as they have that, no amount of flags will stop them.

The real joke is on the people buying those flags.

So what do artists make money from?

The trickery sucks hard, but...

The focus should really be on getting the record companies to treat their artists decently- right now it kind of sounds like 'Piracy is ok because record companies rip their artists off anyway'.

That state of affairs is just wrong. It gets ridiculous when artists have to pirate their own works because the company never told them they're re-releasing them, never paid them for it, never supplied author's copies...personal experience right there. It's crazy what they get away with.

And yet, I'm still against piracy being accepted without reservations. This idea that we are entitled to every piece of music and every movie we want for free is just as bad as the record companies' idea that they don't have to pay their artists. Except they're big rich nasty companies and we're the cool rebels. Ah-huh.

I saw a white bike like that in Oxford, at the corner of Broad Street. But it was in the UK and it didn't have a sign, though, so it was probably something else entirely.

It's a nice idea. Here's hoping the bikes don't get removed by the cities.

Heh. They look like they're made by Apple.

#20, you're right, Flickr discourages using it as a storage place for random photos yoinked from the web. I think it even says in their rules that if you have more of other people's pictures than your own, they'll shut your stream down. The attention this user is getting right now might well get him in trouble.

Maybe .us is so small because a lot of people feel .com, by default, means an American website. (usually it's the people who run those websites:P)

No, Theresa, I don't, because for the longest time I never even read the comments. I'll take your word for it that it was nasty.

I appreciate the work you do, naturally. I'm not an advocate for this turning into YouTube comments (oh dear god). Moderation is necesary, and as I keep saying from the start, you guys DO have the last word. All I can do is give my opinion, and all you can do is leave it up or delete it. My bf ws mr wth th thr cmmntrs wh cn't stnd sng ny crtcsm n ths thrds, n mttr ts m, nd dsmss t s thy wld spm lnk, mckng th cmmntr whl thy'r t t.

Hwvr, snc s y hv dsmvwlld th cmmnt n qstn, nw knw tht y gr wth ths cmmntrs nd tht th mdrtn plcy s n fct lt strctr thn ndrstd t t b. Tht nswrs my qstn nd f vr fl tht BB pst dsrvs crtcsm, wll nt pst ny, knwng tht t s nwlcm nd wst f my tm s wll s yrs. Smpl s tht.

Srry t hv tkn p yr tm.

Roninkakuhito, just to clarify, I myself never said Cory posted too much about his book. I just said that I don't see the need to get the pitchforks out when someone criticises a Boinger.

And now I'll shut up for real and let people talk about the book itself.

Actually, while I'm here I should say, good luck, Cory. Should have said that in the first place.

nd nw th cvlsd cnvrstn trns t mckng th dssntng mnrty. Yp, tm fr m t lv ths thrd.

m dsppntd.

>K, t's BCM brng. Bt tht ws th d, rght?

Wll, f y mn Cry, tht wld b wrd strtgy.:P

f y mn m, 'm nly rplyng t thr ppl rplyng t m tc tc. t's dscssn. Mstly 'm stll tryng t fgr t why thr s sch fss s vr crtcsm (kp n mnd sy crtcsm, nt rdnss), nd m srprsd tht ppl hr r s vhmntly gnst t.

wld hv tkn Mrk's cmmnt s fnl, xcpt h dd vry clrly sy tht h spks nly fr hmslf. nd s fr th dscssn s cvlsd. Mstly.

Bt m gttng rdy t stp. dn't s wht mr cld sy n th tpc. Tk t r lv t, gss. jst wsh 'd gttn n nswr t my qstn.

I've read that policy, Antinous. Nowhere does it say in there that criticism is not allowed. It says, however:

Q. So we're not allowed to say something's boring?

A. Of course you're allowed. You just have to explain why.

Clockwork said Cory's posts about his new book annoyed him because of their frequency. He didn't break any rules as far as I can see. Neither did I.

Okay, I'm posting on a private blog with moderated comments. You're right, my wording was wrong.

m pstng n blg whr n crtcsm s llwd?

nd t b clr n ths, n cs shld wsh t cmmnt gn.

ntns, whr dd vr sy tht shld mk th rls? ws mkng sggstn, tht s ll. Why d y fnd tht s ffnsv?

Spkng f scl rls, sn't thr n bt ccptng crtcsm?

Mrk sys h spks nly fr hmslf. wll blv hm bcs, wll, h sd t. Bt dn't s why ths s s bvs. Hw n rth cld ssm tht smn wh gs t th trbl t crt blg lk BB dsn't gv dmn whthr ppl rd nd njy t?

Y cn cmpln bt my clths nd chcs f y lk, dn't mnd, bt cmprng hrssmnt t dscssng thngs n n pn blg s bt slly. 'm nt shtng thrgh smn's wndw, 'm pstng n pblc blg wth n pn cmmnt systm.

"wld y s tht tn t smn's fc? nd wld y xpct r-nvt?"

jst dd, ddn't ? r y syng my tn s npprprt? 'v sn y s fr wrs rnd hr. Th sbjct ws pn fr dscssn- ws frnk. Bt f ffndd nyn, plgs, tht wsn't my ntnt.

Lk t r nt, whn y mk blg pblc nd pn cmmnts, y'r nvtng ppl t tll y wht thy thnk. BB sms t b prtty bg n hnsty n gnrl- f thr s n mplctn tht crtcsm f th dtrs s nwlcm, prd, thn mssd t.

Not really. I don't see why you don't think a comment on the image of Boing Boing as a whole isn't useful. No one can force any of the editors to change what they post about. But if no one ever tells them a recurring topic isn't interesting, they won't know.

I don't see the harm in it at all. I don't get the analogy either. Maybe like this: say someone who often frequents your dinner parties said 'I wish you'd shut up about ukuleles.' The rest of the people might disagree and say they're fascinated with the subject. When I see my friends' eyes glazing over when I start talking about eighteenth century sail for the millionth time, I know it's time to stop. Or at least I consider stopping. :P I don't get angry with them for wanting to talk about something else.

Although to think about it, if you really do only post this for your own enjoyment and don't give a fig whether people read it or not, this discussion is moot.

It's still my opinion that criticism is useful and should be welcome regardless of whether the blog is free or not. I personally like to know why people do or don't like my work. However if you disagree with that, there's no point in either of us repeating ourselves over and over.

I don't see either of those in this particular thread, Takuan. So far, so good.

Fair enough, Mark, but then you'd probably be better off disabling the comments. The internet is an interactive medium- a more or less loyal reader will feel entitled to speak up, especially when he's given the opportunity.

For the record, I enjoy most of BB. Otherwise I wouldn't give a damn. I don't enjoy all of it. I'd like to feel like I can say 'meh' as easily as I can say 'awesome' (although the 'meh' will usually demand more of an explanation, which I'm aware of.)

I mean, you do have the power to just delete the posts that you wish would go away, of course. My opinion doesn't matter at all- only yours does. That's not snark, that's a fact, and I accept it. Still, you just replied to something I said- that means you want dialogue with your readers. In some minuscule, perhaps almost insignificant way, you care that I care.

I'll be honest, there is nothing more unnerving than internet shrines. They look suspicious. I much prefer to see a blog where people feel comfortable enough to say 'I didn't like this post because...'

Number 9...number 9.

I wouldn't say clockwork's comment is useless and unhelpful. It gives you, dear BoingBoingers, the opinion of a Boing Boing reader. True, every one of us has a scrollbar, none of us HAVE to read this website or any particular editor's posts, but are you guys running this blog for your own enjoyment only, or do you want to know what kind of posts people like, and which ones annoy them?

At the end of the day it's still your blog, your decision what to post, and no one can do anything about it except stop reading. No need to get all upset just because someone thinks you're posting too much or too little about something, and wants to tell you about it. He wasn't even rude, he was just frank.

Cory, you can decide he's a minority and ignore him, or you can think about whether there are more people out there who think you're tooting your own horn too much. That CAN be off-putting. I'm not saying either way- but I don't understand the hostility over an honest comment.

That really, really sucks. :(

His brother? I always thought it was his cousin.

I could swear Donald still gets that desperate- but I haven't been up to date on DD since my sister got teenaged. Apparently it's not cool anymore after you're thirteen.

"Get Up" is good, because everything REM is good, but if that's the choice for their foolproof hit, someone's judging by length alone.

:P Funny article.

Ah, fudge it. I fail at html.

It's not just that they look nice. I've tried many types of sketchbooks before I found out about the moleskine, but now I doubt I'll ever want anything else. They are excellent for travel journals, even if you take it to the extreme. Here's a picture of my friend's travel journal- it's the fattest moleskine I've ever seen, but it still holds together.

Omi's Australian Journal

I've seen other companies make similar notebooks, and I bet there's nothing wrong with them, either. But I love my moleskine, and like Rudat this Rudat?) said above, it's a tool. A very good tool.

And only six minutes in between the spam :P. Well done.

Those pictures are amazing. I'll never wonder if sci-fi movies overdesign their spacecraft again.

I often fear that I am mentally ill.

I...oh, crap.

Are you guys seriously worried about someone defacing a dirty old pavement? There's gum and dog crap all over it, and you're condemning a bit of graffiti?

Don't worry, the thing will rub off eventually, with all the people walking over it, not to mention the elements doing their share. Come on now. It's a pavement.

One of my favourite tags of this type is in the centre of Warsaw- I think it might have been an advertisement once, hard to tell at this point, but there's a whole area of sidewalk where some of the tiles are marked like bonus fields in a video game. You can walk around like a loon and pretend you're playing until you reach the tile that says 'Game Over'. :D

[...]the blog site that it did not state what ethnicity one writer was, and that the other was half filipino and she did not know what the other half was.

I had to tell, her like the box for the white family, when race is not stated, white is always the default.

Half Filipino, half white?

That's the problem right there, I guess, because it should be half Filipino, half French, Italian, Russian, whatever.

But I'd assume the blog you're talking about defaulted the other half to the nationality of whatever country it's based in. If in America, they meant half Filipino, half American. Not half Filipino, half white, that makes no sense.

Hehe, love the comment that goes 'It's a fake.' A fake what? :P

Hollowing out a book was "ingenuity" in 1928?

I was going to ask the same thing...that's the oldest trick in the, hm, book.

My favourite dolls were always the black ones. I had a set of life-size plastic dolls when I was a kid- black toddler and two black babies. And that was in 1986, behind the Iron Curtain. They were the rage- they were COOL. And no one really thought twice about it.
Obviously, we don't have the same history with black people that America does. I saw my first black person when I was...hm, eleven maybe? It was like, whoaaa. So different than me.

So the wording here is stupid- big deal. I agree with #18: As long as the intent is positive, this is way cool. And you know, they probably settled on 'Ethnic' because they were afraid to say 'Black' because despite their obviously limited English they managed to understand that in the West, it can be considered a slur. And there is no universal, proper alternative. So it's like...can't win.

does this Asian Family cross a line?

My friend just got back from a trip to Japan with a phone fob that looks just like that, lines for eyes and yellow skin and everything. It's cute. It's cartoony. It's recognisable as a little Japanese person. Just like the little babooshka I have on my fridge is recognisable as Russian. Which is why they sell well as souvenirs. :P

#26, small streets don't get you everywhere you need to go. If drivers keep a safe distance from the sidewalk, there should be plenty of room for a bicycle to fit in there. But if you want to ban them from riding on busy streets, then make cycle paths, first.

I can't count the number of times a 'blind' driver almost killed me while I was on my bike, minding the law. Of course the one time I made a mistake and didn't notice priority rights on an unmarked (and empty) street, I had a driver actually follow me yelling.

My favourite was the time when, in slow traffic, a driver decided to get closer to the sidewalk so that he could overtake a tram, and almost crushed me as I was cycling past. I leapt off my bike and pulled it off the street at the last minute- it was only then that the driver saw me.

It's hell for bikers. Get on the street, you're too slow and people get pissed off. Get on the sidewalk (you're allowed to do that over here provided there is no bike path and you don't endanger pedestrians), people get pissed off. Get on the bike path- oh, look, PARKED CARS AND PEDESTRIANS.

Seriously, what is it about a bicycle that is so deserving of contempt?

Oh, good. People can throw stones now, the target has been clearly marked, and they will come away from it with a clear conscience and the feeling of a job well done.

As so many commenters have already said, if this guy is so dangerous that he needs a warning sign, LOCK HIM UP.

If not, don't give his neighbours an excuse to pick up their pitchforks. People are all too eager to do that when they feel justified- it's like the hero in movies, absolved from killing twenty people because they were the bad guys. We all fantasise about punching someone who deserves it, no? But that has nothing to do with justice and everything with the fulfilment of our own abusive desire.

Hm. Sounds familiar.

Let's not teach people that they're allowed to hurt criminals because they're bad guys. Punishment is one thing, revenge and the release of frustration are another. What is this, the Wild West?

Was about to say.

Did he just walk up and say those things, or was there a bit more chatter or conversation beforehand? That makes a huge difference. Who says he wasn't on friendly enough terms with that Nigerian official, for instance? My family worked in an embassy, and with all the odd ways every house on the row represented their country, you had to keep a sense of humour about you. When local VIPS were invited to take part in our national customs, most of them got it horribly wrong. No one got offended, it was all part of discovering another culture.

And it's true that old people exhibit a sense of humour that hasn't been soaked in political correctness. It's not always appropriate, but I'd rather someone said 'wow, your national folk costume is really odd' than pretend he was so damned sophisticated he hadn't even noticed I'm wearing it.

What the hell?

What a stigma to put on a kid. And you have to wonder what records this 'prediction' would appear on. Wouldn't schools prefer to know if their applicants were prone to develop a violent streak? And employers, too, they have a right to know whether they're hiring a potential criminal. It's only fair, it's only logical, if such information is recorded, it should be put to good use! In fact, the child should be closely monitored as he grows up, so that his future crime can be easily prevented.

Way to put people down before they've even had a chance to live their life. This is insane.

They probably gave him an option to have it shipped home or something.

The bag is idiotic. Way to scare people- not just at the airport, but wherever you go. Scare, and provoke.

The book sounds cool, but is it just me or is that blurb really clunky? Unappealing.

It's kind of cool, but why not make something pretty?

That is supremely funny :D Que? Que? :D

Wait, so the most logical explanation for not being able to contact any of the crew for half an hour is that they all somehow fell asleep?

Safer bet that they were having an orgy in the cockpit. Or playing monopoly, whatever.

I hold my breath and tense up whenever I'm trying to concentrate on stuff, I've noticed that- with emails it's like a race against time because something will inevitably distract me before I am done. So it's like...hold your breath...typetypetypetype send it...breathe.

I wish I had a second floor. I certainly have enough books to build a whole new house with.

The Bush Administration has put forth new rules demanding that visitors to the US from Europe need to apply for "approval" to land, days in advance of purchasing their tickets.

Some of us already (still) have to do that. Poland was promised a revision of the visa laws after entering the EU, but so far we're still too suspicious to be allowed into the US without the visa hassle. My first visa was for six months- the one I have now is valid for ten years, but I can still get turned away upon arrival and be forced to make the 16-hour flight back home without even getting out of the airport. A visa's just a very expensive permit to ASK for permission for entry. You gotta love that.

Meanwhile, the US wants our soldiers in their war, our land for their secret prisons, our airspace for their rocket shields, and all we get in return is McDonalds. Ew. I know we're not the most important country out there, but do me a favour!

I don't get it.

This reminds me of when I came back to Poland in 1995 after being abroad for four years. It was like going back in time. Suddenly I was yanked out of the affluent and consumptionist West and dropped back into a world with no multiplex cinemas, no free plastic bags in grocery stores, no shopping malls...

After reading this headline I thought, gee, I wish I could do this. Then I realised that I'm a woman and how my offer of 'services' would likely be interpreted.

W00t.

MOTISBEARD, personally it's not the word 'beautiful' that annoys me on BB. Rather, 'ongoing'. Ongoing! Ongoing! Bongoing! Bongboing! Boingboing! Argh.

The thing is, what else can you say about this map after a quick google? Well...it's pretty.

(the hoodie is not.)

CERTHAS, I think what they mean by work is any kind of activity that helps us develop, not simply performing a job to earn money. That is, instead of sitting idle in our free time, to try and do something, anything, take a walk at the least. Active versus passive, that sort of thing. Of course, at the end of the day we should mind the balance.

Like any Rules For Life' they're more like guidelines, inspirations. A bit convoluted for my taste, but I really do like the Work one. And I'm as lazy as they come.

I've seen worse around the countryside here- a wooden horse-cart drawn by what looked like a naked lawnmower engine, with two inebriated farmers at the oversized wheel. I wish I had taken my camera out fast enough.

Re:
I've never met one person who spoke lightly about Stalin's "labor camps" or the Gulag's.

etc.

I can buy red socks with a hammer and sickle embroidered on them, and everyone thinks it's wicked cool and cute. A swastika wouldn't go over so well.

Call me puerile, but that map is extremely phallic. :D

Felt needs to be banned from Etsy. Seriously.

And I thought I was allergic to sunshine like my mum. She gets a rash, I sneeze. Guess not!

I'm with #2. This is cute, but thoughtless.

I wish I could find the place I originally read about this- it mentioned that the couple are originally from Africa and that this type of cake is an accepted custom in their home country. So, no, this is not modern popculture bridezilla gone mad.

@Nato Welch, some engineers from the seventies? Or maybe the fifties? I've ridden that tram line, and although I assume the system has been modernised since it was first installed, the experience doesn't really do much to back that assumption.:P

Ironically, it looks that modernisation is what made it easier for the teen. Local news says he had constructed an infra-red controller which he used to change the track directions at the turn. On a lot of crossings, this is still done by hand- the tram driver has to stop, get out, use a special tool to change the direction of the turn and then drive on.

The paper also claims that the boy is a hooligan known to the police since 2003, an infamous menace in his neighbourhood.

Just chiming in to agree with all the other commenters recommending that you check out the other Moomin books. They're wonderfully illustrated by the author herself, and very philosophical, considering they're meant for children. My and Mymble aren't girls, either. They're trolls, just like Moomin and all the other creatures in the books. :D

Mmmm nostalgia.

Had I the skills, I'd build a working steampunk laptop just for my dad, who has not yet migrated from his old Consul typewriter. The rat-tat-tatatat-ding! of his more creative moments is a well-known sound in our house.
He still does all of his writing on the typewriter, makes corrections in fountain pen, then delivers the lot to my mother who types it into the computer.
But he's getting a laptop this Christmas, and we will see if he can finally make the leap. I hope he doesn't completely. I've listened to the sound of his typewriter all my life, and I'm sure I'd miss it.

Aaaah, feels like home.

You know, in some post-communist countries, this is still quite common.

www.flickr.com/photos/cefeida/478399314

This is a photo I took of the shop window of a feather laundry in Lodz, Poland, last year. The pile of feathers and that greasy little piece of cardboard is their only advertisement.

A two-horned unicorn, maybe.

#9 Theresa, I know, I'm rather fond of them myself. Their suffering is just more easily dismissed than a dog's. People love dogs almost by default.

I wasn't trying to make a point, it was just a thought on how we need something to hit close to home to make us care.

I had a book that had a similar drawing on the inside cover once...it was a fun thing to draw, as a kid. :D

Butter butter butter butter...the word has lost all meaning.

82% fat or bust.

The front cover reminds me of the illustration style in books I used to read as a child. I guess that means the author got something right- I grew up in Poland in the early eighties, so influences from the soviet bloc were not scarce.

It's funny, the short recap of the story here on Boing Boing is so much different in tone from what I learned about Laika as a child. She was mentioned as a hero, a brave creature who sacrificed herself for science. I read the passage over and over, wondering what it was like to die so far away from home, with no hope of rescue. Even though it wasn't hard to figure out that Laika probably didn't volunteer to suffer the gruesome death, it's very difficult for me not to continue to think of her as a hero, and of the whole endeavour as mankind's courageous attempt to reach the stars.

Mind, we do grow up with the idea that dogs are loyal, good creatures and best friends to man. I don't think anyone cares about all the lab rats who perished in space station experiments.