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Monthly Archives: August 2005

Stampede in Iraq: 648 Dead

31-Aug-05

Good God.
Guardian:
At least 648 people were killed in a stampede on a bridge Wednesday when panic engulfed a Shiite religious procession amid rumors that a suicide bomber was about to attack, officials said. It was the single biggest confirmed loss of life in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion.
Scores jumped or were pushed to their […]

New Taiwan Typhoon

31-Aug-05

Why are hurricanes in Asia called typhoons? Got me. Nomenclature aside, a big hurricane typhoon hurri-phoon is about to lash Formosa. BBC:
Schools and other public buildings in several areas of Taiwan, including the capital, were closed on Wednesday in advance of a powerful typhoon.
Typhoon Talim is scheduled to hit the northern, eastern and central parts […]

Twisty Skyscraper in Sweden

30-Aug-05

CNN:
MALMO, Sweden (AP) — The Nordics’ tallest skyscraper was officially opened Saturday with prize-winning Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava surveying the view from the 54th floor.
With its spectacular 90-degree twist, Turning Torso consists of nine stacked cubes, each turned slightly.

“A War to be Proud Of”

30-Aug-05

Christopher Hitchens: “The case for overthrowing Saddam was unimpeachable. Why, then, is the administration tongue-tied?”
Hitchens, Iraq, war

Overheard at a Party on Saturday Night

29-Aug-05

I went to a party Saturday night* and overheard an interesting snippet of conversation.
“Yeah, well,” a male voice behind me was telling his friends, “the thing is he wasn’t even all that respected in the graffiti community.”
I cocked my head and perked my ears up and, yes, that’s who they were talking about: DC’s […]

AA Minus God

29-Aug-05

LA Times:

Eighteen years ago, Larry B. was newly sober when he got up at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting and said he was troubled by the 12-step program’s emphasis on God.
Shortly afterward, someone slipped the San Fernando Valley man a note: “Have you tried SOS?”
Larry took the stranger’s advice and sought out SOS, now called Save […]

Hurricane Katrina

29-Aug-05

The Moderate Voice is blogging the news coverage of hurricane Katrina’s assault on New Orleans.
hurricane, Katrina

Reason Number 812 I Wanna Go to Japan

29-Aug-05

Harjuku.
harajuku

New Truman Capote Biopic

28-Aug-05

A new Truman Capote biopic is opening on September 30th. The film tells the story of Capote investigating and writing the classic “non-fiction novel” In Cold Blood. The movie’s called “Capote,” and the trailer is promising. Philip Seymour Hoffman will play TC, and the movie also features the excellent Catherine Keener and Chris Cooper. […]

Bizarre Lede of the Day

28-Aug-05

CNN:
EZULWINI VALLEY, Swaziland (Reuters) — The king of Swaziland’s daughter was whipped by a palace official at a party of teenage virgins ahead of a festival where more than 50,000 maidens are available to become her father’s 13th wife, media said on Sunday.
Swaziland

English Teacher by Day, Coke Kingpin by Night

28-Aug-05

Taipei Times:
The Coast Guard Administration’s Keelung mobile-investigation team yesterday arrested an international drug smuggling ring based in Neihu (內湖) allegedly led by a Canadian who teaches English in Taiwan, a Central News Agency (CNA) report said.
They were busted with some 600 kg (over 1300 pounds!) of blow. Some photos here.
(Via The Taipei Kid.)
UPDATE: 8/30: […]

Skinny Water

27-Aug-05

For those of you out there who feel normal H2O has too many calories, I give you this: Skinny Water.
water

Commencement Speech Analysis

26-Aug-05

FlyLittleBird: “an experiment in building collective wisdom from hundreds of undergraduate commencement speeches.” The findings are intriguing. For example, rating “components of the good life” reveals that the most common factor speakers gave was “Service: giving time to those in need.”
One thought: does the fact that this advice was given to a large group of […]

More on the US and Paraquay

26-Aug-05

Watching America has the translation of an article from Spain about developing ties between the US and Paraguy. Interesting passage:
This was admitted by the vice president himself, who said that Secretary Rumsfeld was worried about the situation in the zone. “… We also spoke of countries closer to us in the region; they […]

My Current Favorite Songs

25-Aug-05

I swore I’d never do something like this, but Wendy H. has tagged me with the “what 10 songs are on repeat in my iTunes” meme, and I feel compelled to respond. Here goes:
1. Beck, “Girl,” / Guero
2. Ozomatli, “Guerillero” / Embrace the Chaos
3. Golden Smog, “To Call My Own” / Weird Tales
4. Jay-Zeezer, “99 […]