Friday Ephemera (668)
The dimensions of various things, from the Japanese Badger to Mr Auric Goldfinger. || Soyuz “Globus” mechanical navigation computer. (h/t, Elephants Gerald) || Today’s word is self-perception. || At last, a database of silhouettes. || Snack dispute of note. (h/t, Elephants Gerald) || Best not to, really. || Being all-woman, he wants to share his breasts with you. || Bagged one. || Blue Monday do-over. || Incoming. || Incoming 2. (h/t, Julia) || For when you’re cooking penguin eggs. || Routine irony #37. || News from Wales. || “You’ll wonder how you lived without it!” || Ditto this. || The hat was slowing him down. || Yes, do take notes, because it will be on the test. || “The length and rigidity of the arm is adjustable.” || An amphibious feat. || And finally, it’s the biggest one of those I’ve ever seen.
Should you be tempted, you can follow me on Twitter.
the page is gone so I’ll have to.
very sweet.
the page is gone so I’ll have to
Wonder no more:
Hands-free telephone headset ad, 1993 : Damnthatsinteresting (reddit.com)
Long comment thread on copyright law, bowdlerization of old books, and woke librarians “de-accessioning” politically incorrect books.
LOL
Morning, all.
Links restored. If there’s one thing I really love doing, it’s being not-quite-awake-yet and searching for alternative copies of links that were checked last thing the previous evening but deleted overnight by overly zealous moderators.
Oh, and yes. It’s still snowing. 41 hours.
“AAAHHH”
And Jared in the background, licking his… self.
Can’t believe I watched it to the end. 🙂
I suppose, given the effort involved, and the relative proportions, you felt invested in the drama.
I needed closure.
Here.
Her pulse, I’m guessing.
Again, when you defer to the lie, complications will ensue, along with quite a lot of farce. Best, I think, not to give away the store in the first place.
44 hours of snow.
Being all-woman…
TBF, at least he picked a good surgeon.
From The dimensions of various things…Mr Auric Goldfinger.
Yeah…ummm…no, not necessarily. Many people yes, but many, many more people, no. And specifically facts not in evidence re one Mr. Auric Goldfinger. So…wtf this has to do with his dimensions, physical or otherwise has me…nonplussed is it? Probably something else…
[ Invokes scene from Ice Station Zebra. ]
I would probably get a visit from the DEI police, if I were to say that some people are just born with antisocial tendencies.
My favorite Error 404:
And now, for variety, delusion that does not revolve around sex:
Cori Bush’s Bodyguard Says He Can’t Be Anti-Semitic Because He’s a Jewish High Priest
What will it cost me to unsee that?
Somewhat related.
And of course this.
Snow has stopped. I repeat: snow has stopped.
Librarians at even major universities have been busy getting rid of “old” books. Not their job apparently to preserve historical items or classics. Who knew?
Ok, David, how much snow? Here in Chicago we got snow last night but it all melted as soon as it hit the ground. At the other end of the spectrum, some mountain towns in Cali just got 10 ft.
About eight inches or so. Quite a few large branches broken off by the weight of the snow.
On the upside, the supermarket was practically deserted.
All those old, obsolete, white male writers.
Many years ago, I made the mistake of telling a librarian that I was pleased with how extensive their collection of old Marxist tomes was–one volume had been particularly useful in documenting how obviously deranged and dishonest Marxist “scholarship” could be. Shortly afterwards, I checked the online card catalog to forward the link to someone, and the book had disappeared.
But what men call “eight inches” is really “five inches”.
I’ll let myself out.
I’ll just leave this here.
In the immediate vicinity, where there’s very little traffic, it was more like a foot or so, but I’m averaging out across the wider neighbourhood. You can imagine my fearless warrior face as I emerged from the supermarket, triumphant, clutching the double cream and the cherry and almond tart.
Time to re-read those old 1960’s science fiction novels about a new Ice Age.
[ Does fearless warrior face. ]
From I’ll just leave this here.
Still trying to imagine that or ?
“White dudes writing about white ideas”: That is a very Nazi attitude.
Wokeness does seem to appeal most strongly to fundamentally awful people.
David: I will give it to you, 8 inches or a foot is a lot of snow. About 20 yrs ago here we got 2 ft accompanied by 20 F below zero. Shut the whole damn place down. My car was making a high pitched whine and I called a tow truck. Sure, he said, we can come in 48 hrs. I took my chances and drove to a service station where it turned out to be a frozen speedometer cable.
Librarians: if they dumped all the white male authors their stacks would be 95% empty.
Well, it’s a lot of snow for here. I can’t remember the last time roads were blocked by large branches broken off by the weight of the snow.
[ Eyes cherry and almond tart, fires up oven. ]
Today’s word is self-perception
The self-mutilation is no different from cutting, morbid obesity, physically dangerous sexual fetishes, anorexia, compulsive tattooing or piercing, and for the same reasons.
Best not to, really
Security x-rays are pretty harmless, The real risk there was her getting her hair wound around the motorized rollers and scalping herself.
“The length and rigidity of the arm is adjustable.”
Wait, Dave Barry is still around? Great Scott.
Weird Canadian confluence: Dave Barry’s early columns from the 1980s and Pierre Berton’s early columns from the 1960’s are eerily similar in style, to the point that it’s easy to mistake one writer for the other.
some people are just born with antisocial tendencies.
Everyone is born with antisocial tendencies. Human beings have to be taught consideration for others and respect for boundaries. The cluster B personality disorders are all disorders of retarded emotional and social development. All of that “poverty” and “low-income levels” and “situations they were born into” bollocks is code for the other thing: parental neglect.
Librarians at even major universities have been busy getting rid of “old” books.
Librarians have been the most communist-y of the academic Communists since forever. I don’t know why librarians specifically, although I suspect the typical “having too much formal education and no actual marketable skills” package has much to do with it.
Library science is itself a valuable discipline – I know large software companies that employ people with such degrees to design schema for keeping track of their huge library of software assets – but you don’t need an M.Sc in Library Science to work in a library. I’m not sure you need a high school diploma.
[ Wipes tart residue from chin. ]
[Peers over spectacles.]
“The length and rigidity of the arm is adjustable.”
Did anyone have “robot rectum rooter” on their “Skynet takeover” bingo card?
“An amphibious feat.”
The toad didn’t expel it, so much as slowly move out of its way.
Seems to be a common … colon theme this Friday. You even have a commenter named “Ream.”
[ Rolls single grey peanut along bar to Mr Holland. ]
On the house.
My car was making a high pitched whine and I called a tow truck.
Why on earth did you call a tow-truck for your cat? Oh, sorry, car! CAR!
…but you don’t need an M.Sc in Library Science to work in a library. I’m not sure you need a high school diploma.
Aside from volunteers and part-timers, most employees in Canadian libraries have a community college diploma in Library Techniques which qualifies them to be a Library Technician. The M.Sc in Library Science is mostly overkill; one of those qualifications you can insist upon because so many people them.
Not sure how it works in the UK or the US.
Seems to be a common … colon theme this Friday. You even have a commenter named “Ream.”
As to the amphibean: “Rectum? Damn near killed him!”
I’ll never get tired of that punchline.
[ Quietly heads for the door ]
[ Curare-tipped dart whistles by Steve’s ear. ]
Everyone is born with antisocial tendencies. Human beings have to be taught consideration for others and respect for boundaries.
THAT!! About the only human instinct babies are born with is the drive to survive – they will scream/cry when in need, giggle or smile when content in order to get parents to positively respond on cue. They are the epitome of ‘selfish’. 2 y/os take it to the next level with stuff like tantrums and this is when parents worth their salt start setting boundaries.
Parenting is really about civilizing savages.
Also barkeeping.
What?
Parental neglect is likely the bigger of the numerous other factors but there are people who come from normal circumstances who, for whatever reason, go bad. Often they fell in with the wrong crowd (not a proper excuse) or were abused by someone trusted outside of the family. But many for whatever reason just choose to do evil.
I’ve just finished reading Bad Blood, the book about Elizabeth Holmes and the Thoranos mess. All the characters came from good backgrounds and had plenty of opportunity to be successful elsewhere. Granted many of the players allowed themselves to be fooled but Elizabeth, her BF, and a few others knew that they were deceiving people. It was a bit painful seeing different people catch on, wrestle with their conscious, but still not say anything. Not knowing the full story I was kind of rooting for Ian Gibbons, the British biochemist, to be the one to put a stop to it. His suicide caught me off guard. I went back and reread the chapter on him and realized I missed some foreshadowing there. While I knew, obviously as the story was there in my hands, that it would eventually get exposed I became very irritated with those who partook in the deception along with those elite people like Gen. Mattis, George Schultz, Henry Kissenger, etc. who allowed themselves to be fooled. Though some credit should go to Rupert Murdoch for not squashing the story when he was repeatedly asked to.
[ Curare-tipped dart whistles by Steve’s ear. ]
I thought that was the high pitched whine of a cat…er…car.
I had a barber with whom I would exchange old joke punchlines. Not the jokes, just the punchlines. Like that one and “Great pig like that, you don’t eat him all at once”, “20 bucks, same as in town”, etc. They make decent album names as well.
[Dart thunks into the doorframe. SteveE continues his nonchalant saunter.]
Double Jameson, please, neat.
WTP: my 2 and 3 yr old grandchildren very much want to tell jokes but only have gotten as far as punchlines. The current one is “granpa, I have a joke” “ok” “Bison!” t hat’s it. But we all laugh. Over and over. I am resisting letting them know about knock-knock jokes.
which qualifies them to be a Library Technician
I have this absurd mental image of a librarian lying on her back under a hoist, poking a wrench at the binding of an 1897 printing of The Prisoner of Zenda.
Also barkeeping.
Wait – Barkeeping is about civilizing savages or parenting is about barkeeping?
Often they fell in with the wrong crowd (not a proper excuse) or were abused by someone trusted outside of the family. But many for whatever reason just choose to do evil.
There are certainly congenital neurophysiological etiologies for extreme sociopathy, but they’re extremely rare. And while tragedies do happen, “falling in with the wrong crowd” and being exposed to dangerous people are both things that are well mitigated by good parenting.
…but only have gotten as far as punchlines.
My sons’ primary school held assembly every morning in the gym and joke-of-the-day was part of the standing agenda. Nice idea I thought. But the kids always told jokes in the form of a question and instead of delivering the punchline they asked for answers from the audience. To this day neither of my kids can tell a proper joke.
“The length and rigidity of the arm is adjustable.”
The Richard Gere model comes pincers for small animal removal.
I have this absurd mental image of a librarian lying on her back under a hoist,
An important job. No one wants to have a page blowout while speed reading. Oh the humanity.
Mitigated, yes. Well-mitigated, not so much. In a society where other parents are similarly aligned I would be more inclined to agree. But teenagers can hide a great number of things that their parents never find out about. If a critical mass of the other parents are not so aligned, the opportunities for evil to get hold are greatly expanded. Add to that the absurdity of the last century or so of putting off adulthood by keeping children in schools and colleges when biologically their hormones and such are driving them to do otherwise, to restrict and restrain tens of thousands of years of human social evolution and you have a recipe for disaster.
Snopes says no.
The very concept of “bad seed” seem out of favor among “the smart set”, who prefer Marxist variations on “society is to blame”. When grieving relatives say “he was just born mean” I am inclined to give them respectful attention.
When grieving relatives say “he was just born mean” I am inclined to give them respectful attention.
And we’re back to the ‘nature v nurture’ debate. I’m inclined to give both nature and nurture their influence. For whatever reason, infants are born with their own personalities. They are NOT ‘blank slates’. The *how* of channeling that kid into making the best choices has a lot to do with 1) parents 2) the community they are in.
Great parents can field a lousy kid. Great kids can from unbelievably dysfunctional parents. The best for a kid is to have the odds in their favor – mature, rational bio parents (mom & dad) in the home who are willing to actually PARENT. Still no guarantees. Recent example: Colin Kaepernick
[Peers over spectacles.]
Admirable restraint for not making the obvious joke…
The own goaliest of own goal own goals:
https://twitter.com/NikkiFried/status/1634288772081745920
Of course. only the ideologues totally deny one or the other.
Nature or nurture: the Left believes in the blank slate, as good communists should, except ytes are born evil. Totes consistent.
Heh. My college roommate and his friend argued endlessly over this back in ’83-84. Often when the rest of us were just trying to watch the football game. The absolute absurdity of the absolutes was stunning. Neither one would give an inch. One was a marketing major, the other political science. We discovered the Dunning-Kruger Effect 15 years before either Dunning or Kruger. Not that it was much of a discovery. Much like the New World, it was just waiting there to be “found” by the approved/appropriate people.
I don’t see the big deal, not like they didn’t have a Diet of Worms in 1521.
Note the conspiracy theories in the replies.
“All of Shakespeare’s plays are about race.”
“All of Shakespeare’s plays are about race.”
Christ, even Othello wasn’t black. He was the Moorish Prince from North Africa and was genetically European and not sub-saharan. It wasn’t until the 19th century (1825) that the first black actor played Othello or the suggestion that Othello was “Black” was made in the theatre.
Now, if I go to the Stratford Festival in Canada, not only will I have to listen to the unceded land bullshit before the play, but I’ll have to hear the inserted “Shakespeare was racist” crap too. It’s much easier just not to go. These lefties aren’t going to support the theatre anyway.
“It’s racist to object when my friends prevent your friends from exercising their free speech rights.”
He’s got a point.
Library tech. Hoist. Wrench….
An interesting tiny museum in San Francisco is the Book Bindery Museum. Very technical. Hands-on bits for the un-jaded among us.
Bad neighborhood, though.
Four years on, our woke racist dolt is a “consultant, educator and facilitator,” creating workshops for “discussions on difficult topics.” The moral and intellectual worth of which can, I’m sure, be guessed at, given previous efforts. Her list of clients includes Harvard University, Columbia University, the University of California Monterey Bay, Oregon State University, and the University of New Hampshire, among others.
So, spreading the joy.
They deserve her.
Ms Leung, a self-styled “thought partner,” also insinuates herself into the worlds of schooling, hiring and “customer service,” so many of the victims of this pernicious, stupefying wank will not be volunteers.
And there are legions of these creatures, all eerily uniform in their mentality and assumptions, and their general obnoxiousness. They’re very much of a type. Which is to say, they tend to be resentful, overeducated mediocrities and remarkably incurious, even in their own areas of alleged expertise, and seemingly incapable of autonomous mental activity. However. they do try to compensate for these shortcomings with a zealous, wholesale regurgitation of The Script. And, one assumes, a delight in doing harm.
“Wokeness is a kind of rapid-onset morony” heh
A data point: I know a few librarians, and while they claim to be moderate, liberal folks who universal free speech and the preservation of all books, they also deny that leftist librarians are denouncing and seeking the eradication of writings by white male non-leftists. The neo-Marxist rot that appears in Library Journal is, it seems, a figment of our imagination. As is the
destructionde-accessioning of books by those librarians.Well, given Ms Leung’s bewilderingly stupid outpourings, which are so common among her peers, it’s not, I think, unfair.
Other terms might include triumphantly ignorant, or impervious to mere logic.
And remember, she refers to herself as an educator, an enabler of “critical thinking.”
The laughable vanity of it.
One fun thing about little kids is speaking to them a little over their heads and enjoying the confusion as they try to figure out wth you’re talking about. When they do cute stuff like this I like to imagine that it’s their way of getting even.
If 40 years ago, had someone tried to tell me that Ivy league colleges and similar would go this bloody insane/stupid/whatever if ever, let alone within my lifetime, I would have written them off as nutty conspiracy theorists or such. And that’s coming from a guy who 40 years ago saw a whole lot of other idiocy in the pipeline that I understood had to be mentioned delicately lest those much more obvious but milder observations of idiocy be written off as conspiracy theories and such.
Has anyone here seen Ron DeSantis’s rebuttal to the ” OMGOMGOMG Florida has gone full fascist book banner” media freakouts? The one showing the porn books and such that they were removing from the schools?
“I’m an emblem of freedom”
Every time I see one of Mr Marsh’s videos, I wonder if we’re inching nearer to the inevitable mental breakdown.
I felt an urge to post this, for no reason whatsoever.
An amphibious feat
I bet a dog got the blame
…for no reason whatsoever.
Not at all that guy Marsh…
I have questions, David.
I think we need an actual Son of Wales to adjudicate.
Can an actual Son of Wales make our winter of discontent into glorious summer?
It’s snowing again, by the way.
How weird is it that Leftists can get positively violent to any objection to males costumed as grotesque women & acting sexually in front of children, but a “maid cafe” of consenting adults makes Lefties’ “skin crawl”?
Is it the heterosexuality?
Is it the heterosexuality
Yes. Drag queens aren’t a threat to bitter middle-aged matrons’ mating chances.
Also, from the article: “those familiar with Japanese “otaku” (a word commonly used to address someone interested in Japanese manga, anime or other entertainment)”
[ laughs ] That’s…that’s not what otaku means.
Just getting down to this…
I had the same experience last summer with one in the palm of my hand. Fortunately mine was only 3/4-7/8″ (yes, I had to measure it). Much like the story with this one, I initially got a small part of it out thinking that was it. But as it was still a problem hours later I futzed around and the full splinter came popping out just like the longer one in this video did. Quite the surprise.
“maid cafe”–it is not the heterosexuality. It is pretty girls trying to please those disgusting men. It is competition. It is “objectification” of women. But the only thing worse than the “male gaze” is when men stop looking. I will believe that women trying to attract male attention is men’s fault when women stop doing it. The billions spent on makeup, clothing (including revealing clothing), jewelry, and the rest is men’s fault? Most husbands wish their wives would spend less on that stuff. It is insecurity and female-female competition. Girls in maid costumes or Hooters uniforms is “unfair”.
I believe I’ve related my frustration with local libraries here before, both in Orlando/Seminole county area and the large regional library system of northeast Georgia, in finding books by Thomas Hobbes or Frederic Bastiat or Hayek or even Georges Santayana which are completely absent from those systems. I even had an absurd conversation with an “educated” librarian where I had to help her with the spelling of ‘Hobbes’. Their excuses for the absence of many of these books is that they were old and falling apart, that it’s a shelf space issue (looking around there are empty shelves and even entirely empty bookcases, and my personal favorite that they are “available online anyway”. It would seem to me that much, much more of the modern crap, the Stephen King, the Danielle Steele, the constant flow of Trump hating publications (one of which I counted five copies of the same “new release” on the shelf) would/could/should be much more readily available electronically from their very first edition. When I saw the five copies or so of the one anti-Trump book I wondered how much of the purpose of that is both to inflate the “best seller” numbers and is simply a grift for the authors coming right out of my tax dollars.
I will believe that women trying to attract male attention is men’s fault when women stop doing it.
Remember, the type of woman who complains about “the male gaze” after spending hours dressing up is really complaining about the gaze from those males she’d wouldn’t date on a bet.
Ha! Found it!
Male gaze: further to my point, and not contra darleen, if a woman goes out barely dressed, it is other women who get upset and who even say snide things. In Iran it was women who enforced the head scarf law. Crabs in a bucket.
In the old school sense, yes. These days women can just sue the guy or the company for sexual harassment and get the milk without having to bother putting up with the smelly cow…to awkwardly reverse a metaphor.