""He is showing all the signs and keeps displaying. He bobs up and down on his branch and taps on the ground.""

That's exactly how I show my readiness to mate! Fascinating...

What a moving image. Thanks for sharing that. That humans are still capable of reaching to the stars makes me hopeful, even during this miserable time of war, greed and despoilment.

Bravo! Bravissimo!

Sorry, no Olympics for me this year.

Not as long as China is stomping so hard on Tibet.

Oh yeah: And I'm not buying anything that gets advertised on the Olympics, either.

I think the youngest one was in because his father was passing notes or doing something illegal, but they held him also.

Jeebus. This is our country doing this - holding children as terror suspects because their father was "passing notes or something illegal."

I pray to god we see George Bush and Dick Cheney facing war crimes in the Hague before this is over. They have done damage to our nation that has undone every bit of good will and stature America may have accumulated after our noble actions in World War Two.

There was a time when other countries actually looked to America as a place where there was freedom and prosperity, as a place built upon the finest beliefs of The Enlightenment. Now, we're just a nation of thugs and criminals, pissing in the world's bathwater.

At a time when we badly need to have the civilized countries of the world on our side to create a union of nations that will address the issues of terrrorism, poverty and the environment, we instead have given away every bit of moral authority, thanks to the shameful behavior of our leaders.

Step one in regaining some semblance of dignity is to publicy punish those who have brought about these circumstances, even if they are the president and vice-president. Especially if they are president and vice-president.

Naw, it can't be.

You're messing with my head, Mark.

It's a sad comment on US culture for so many reasons.

Why is the media so interested in this when tens of thousands of Mississipians are losing their homes to foreclosure, or can't afford health care, or are losing their jobs?

Why would a device that allows for safely giving oneself or one's significant other pleasure be illegal in the first place? Especially since Mississippi is full of phony-baloney "pray for prosperity" churches and slimy "ministers" who prey on the poor, the elderly and the stupid?

This is a really important story. This whistleblower, acting in a most patriotic manner by bringing horrible illegal acts to light, continues to be punished severely for his good acts by an FBI that tells him he cannot give his speeches.

By "answering questions" at these events, rather than "giving his speech", Youssef is putting himself in serious danger, professionally, legally and physically.

Our country is looking more and more like East Germany in the 1970s every day.

Not only can you live very profitably as a non-combat character in Eve, but there is also quite a bit of work for diplomats and others that are lovers, not fighters.

Because I'm so fed up with the useless and destructive copyright laws in the US and most other Western countries, I've decided to completely disregard copyright.

As someone who makes my living with the product of my imagination, this will be my third year using Creative Commons licenses instead of Copyright. I'd prefer making all my work public domain, but it limits my options (other production companies often won't use PD works). For now, CC is a great option though, and it's worked well for me.

The surprise is that my income hasn't been hurt one bit by giving up Copyright. I've discovered other ways to turn my work into a living besides the limited options previously available to musicians and composers.

I'm not sure if this is allowed, but you're welcome to help yourself to any of my non-film music, at thewaxwingslain dot com. I add more weekly, so look in if/when you have time.

Happy New Year.

I love Negativeland, but..

I'll wait until it shows up on The Pirate Bay.

How's that for "Maverick Spirit"?

You've just exceeded my safe blood-sugar levels with this story.

If I go into a diabetic coma, I'm suing.

This is why I refuse to put one cent into the coffers of any major record label or movie studio. I can well afford to purchase records and DVDs, but I have finally decided that I'd rather see the entertainment "industry" completely collapse than see our society turn into a police state, not because of a political dictator, but because some executives believe they have a god-given right to profit from the work of creative people.

Today, I will only purchase music directly from the artist, from a used record store or download it "illegally" via bittorrent. No more Virgin Megasuperstore, Borders, etc.

And any public official who supports these laws goes to the top of my list for voting against.

Kristofer, you could rig up a belt of several of those large insulated metal travel jugs and some rubber tubing and perhaps lab-style glass valves, and you wouldn't even have to get up from your chair for days at a time.

"Less trips to fil it up!" Indeed.

I've started reading Indian scifi and re-reading much of the great Indian literature after reading "River of Gods" by Ian McDonald. If memory serves, I picked up that book because I saw a back-cover blurb from Cory. It's funny how things come back around.
If you really want to get your mind blown, find a copy of the Mahabharat, a 45+ hour serialized video telling of a great Hindu myth. I guess you don't get to be the oldest text-based culture without having some terrific stories.

You ask at what point a website of this nature breaks the law.

I'm afraid that in parts of the US, that point only comes when white people are the target.

IMHO, the law was broken when some "clever" white students hung a noose on a tree in a part of the country where lynching is recent enough that grandparents of some of the black students remember it first hand.

Racism is still an infected boil on America's ass.

Reason magazine has deteriorated into a pro-corporate mess. Once, it actually held some libertarian positions, but has become little more than a pro-Republican, pro-big business rag, I'm afraid.

As a subscriber to Reason, I've watched it's decline with some sadness.