@ANTINOUS

And you're not standing right there with them, chanting along right now?

Pot, meet kettle.

I'm going to second what's been said a few times over (though I'm late getting to the debate) and say this is all very Memory Hole-ish for a blog that is anti-censorship. If it's an issue with the sponsors, something should be said so that the readers can make an educated decision about whether they want to continue to read blogs sponsored by pro-censorship ads. If it's a personal issue with Violet Blue, I'd suggest she, herself, should be informed as to why, as interviews with her seem to suggest that she has no clue why it happened either.

Anthony Burgess said it best: "You can destroy what's been written, but you cannot unwrite it." Saying its on the wayback machine seems to only go toward undermining the integrity of boingboing, who would lambaste any other site for doing the same thing, especially without the transparency of giving a reason why.

Why is anyone surprised that Ben Stein has a conservative bias and loses his argument via Godwin's law (among others)? The man was a speech writer for Nixon.

Did his monotonous "Bueller? Bueller?" lull us into forgetting the man who was once his employer? Is that how politicians get away with things -- appear on SNL or in some pop culture phenomenon of the moment, release something on YouTube, and we'll think you're cool and with it and not a right-wing republican at all?

In that case, Mike Gravel should be our next president. Damn that Helter Skelter vid rocked my socks!

Not that I agree with Niven at all (I don't) but I would like to point out that I know of many individuals -- many of them citizens of this country -- who've scammed the hospitals for everything from basic medical care to the entire cost of child birth services, and it does cause the hospital costs to rise for those of us who pay. Of course, I see it often because it's what happens when you work in one of the poorest inner cities in the country with one of the highest rates of violent crime (we were once the murder capital of the country!) and a very high rate of illegal immigrants whose under the table jobs can't really offer benefits.

Having said that, I'd also like to point out the racist and classist nature of the Niven's comment against the Hispanic community and say this: the worst offender that I'm aware of *is* an illegal immigrant who scammed several area hospitals the most for various types of care including the cost of her maternity stay. She's from England and middle class.

Oh, those annoying other points of view! Always getting in the way, making you actually use your brain to *THINK* and question what you already know!

*waits to be added to the blocked list*

If only a normal, healthy guy would just eat at McDonalds for 30 days to see whether or not one can be healthy eating...

Oh yeh. Sorry! I forgot about that!

Well, maybe if some writer would research not only the source of McDonalds food, but what chemicals, additives, fats, and so forth are put into the food at all levels as well as how McDonalds (and other fast food "restaurants" in the nation) manipulate research and statistics by funding said....

Oh. Right.

Nevermind.

"Boy, the Peninsula Tokyo sounds sweet: "This being Tokyo, the hotel also includes a futuristic touch: a first-of-its-kind telephone system that allows you to make calls throughout the building with a cordless handset, which then switches to mobile mode the minute you step outside."

Okay, so when Ted Stevens wants a phone that will go from a home phone to a mobile that he can use "on his motorcycle", it's a dumb idea, but when the Japanese do it, it's "sweet"??? Nice one.