The Age of Humbert

Via Slate

I'm probably bringing Pieces of Flair dangerously close to relevance, but I don't doubt that there will be a post about a graphic novelization of the life of Godzilla creator Tomoyuki Tanaka or the like in the near future to compensate.

Regardless, as I find myself firmly in the "Hell, that's messed up" camp, and as PoF has previously highlighted the disturbing without ignoring the pedophilic, I thought I could give this a go. It also helps that I believe that Brazil's rising international clout makes them the successors of Japan and Russia as international purveyors of cultural unease.

So, with that in mind, I thought I'd seek commentary on Brazil's 8-year-old Lady Gaga, which, while double-take inducing, doesn't lack for camp value:



A frightening new stage in the sexualization of pre-pubescents, or is nothing new under the sun? As Shirley Temple shows us:



OK, with that, I'll start hunting regretsy for a follow-up post.

Smells like Teen Spirit - The Ukulele Orchestra

It is finished.

Speaking of abusing Smells Like Teen Spirit....

Via BoingBoing

You've been badly whipped...

For more of this general brilliance, visit Nate Bloch's site.

Thanks to Mike N. at FEE, and Tom, in his own nagging way...

Politico Editorial Meeting

It's possible that i find this funny solely because i used to live in DC. Possible, but I think it's pretty funny:)

Via Dave Weigel

Nirvana, Rick-rolled

There really are no words.

via CNet's The Social

Terrifying moments on Sesame Street

More here--from the good folks at Mental Floss.

The Olympic Spirit

At times, Shabalin led Domnina around by her ponytail. They mugged, stuck out their tongues and mimicked the hand over mouth gesture that was once associated with American Indians. (See it here and judge for yourself.) After the dance ended, the crowd gave the Russians what could generously be called a lukewarm reception.

The picture hardly does it justice. If it weren't for NBC's super-douchey video restrictions, I'd post it here. The best I can recommend is to google and watch at your leisure. The part where he appears to drag her by her hair is a particularly nice touch. Don't miss the eskimo tard kiss at the end.

Chocolate Shop

Faith in humanity = restored

All Creative Work Is Derivative

In honor of how much the D word has been thrown around on PoF:



Via Stephan Kinsella at the Mises Blog.

How English sounds to non-speakers

Evidently, to Italians it sounds like this:



Via this blog full of fascinating things i recently happened across.

Happy Valentine's Day

I think this is Jimmy Fallon's Mike Myers impersonation. That's really all I have to say.

Beaker's Ballad

Your Super Bowl moment of Zen

Selleck Waterfall Sandwich

Exactly what you're thinking and one of the most brilliant gems hiding in the internets rough. The best use of the tumblr platform to date.

Take a listen to the theme song.

Haloscan's demise

Bad news... Haloscan, the awesome free software I've used for the blog to manage comments has just given me its two weeks notice. There are two options: (1) export and save the comments and hope that a third party vendor develops something to import Haloscan files, (2) sign up for Echo ($12/yr), which may or may not be as functional as Haloscan, or (3) ditch the old system altogether. Any thoughts on this matter of vital importance are welcome. Please note that the quote bin will not be affected, as these comments are saved on blogger.

Best news story ever

See more funny videos and TBT Videos at Today's Big Thing.

Via Ivan O.

Rock-a-bye

From the defensive, to the offensive, to the macabre, and everything in between. If you've already exhausted other means of using your child to broadcast your personal aesthetic, consider one of these to ensure everyone out there knows how truly non-conformist you really are.

Baby Carriages of the Damned.

Thanks to Xela B. on Facebook.

Finally! Econ Rap

Just another reason to love Russ Roberts.

This has me thinking about dusting off my "Income elastic, unitary" (set to the Beastie Boys' "Intergalactic") rap i composed in undergrad. Nah, that's still a terrible idea.

Via: every free-market/libertarian/economics peep i know.

Werner Herzog read Curious George

Via Andrew Sullivan

The Late Night War

Via Adam Mueller.

I get the news I need from the weather report

Though currently on hiatus, the David Lynch Daily Weather Report is worth the subscription. It's not daily of course and some episodes are more Lynchian than others.

Also, if you're semi-obsessed with Lynch as many of us here at PoF are, this interview project, aptly titled: INTERVIEW PROJECT, deserves a gander.

No Comment

For women too!

Geekstars of tomorrow?

Via "Sex, Drugs and Applied Science"

Mystery solved

You've probably always wanted to know what teddy bear diarrhea looks like. Thanks to the fine folks at Pedialyte, now you do.

At the risk of alienating all of you...

...FaceBook users.

Seasteading's "Burning Man on the Water": Ephemerisle

Ephemerisle Documentary by Jason Sussberg from The Seasteading Institute on Vimeo.

More.

No idea what's this is all about? Check it.

Behold, the Star-Spawn of Cthulu!

Okay, so it's just an octopus...that's using a coconut shell as armor!

Full story.

How Twilight Works

With typical direct simplicity, The Oatmeal breaks down America's most beloved mopey-bastard-driven literature. Consider this your gateway to The Oatmeal's creamy goodness...



The Oatmeal

Also recommended: What Marcellus Wallace Looks Like.

Thanks to Daniel K. at Facebook

The Barry Manilow t-shirt experiment

Via the WSJ: "maybe we worry too much about what others think. A Cornell study of the psychology of embarrassment—which I like to think of as the Barry Manilow T-shirt experiment —suggests as much. Subjects were required to enter a room wearing a T-shirt featuring a large picture of Mr. Manilow, the crooner whose hits may induce as much wincing as swooning. Although 50% of the T-shirted subjects were self-conscious about what they were wearing, only 20% of the people in the room even noticed it. This experiment yielded the reassuring result that individuals are more aware of their gaffes—from flubbing an answer at an interview to having a bad hair day—than most of the people observing or talking to them."

I Declare This Kid the Winner.

The Post Anything and Win 2009 PoF Song-Off!

Ok, so I realize my postings have dwindled to a nearly non-existent trickle. Hello billable hours! Anyway, I just looked at the date and realized we have exactly one day to get a 2009 song contest in. So here it is. Post a song, any song. It must be an original recording. If you post something truly kick-ass, I will even provide a kick-ass prize. Anything goes folks, after all, sometimes the bare minimum is enough.

Had enough this holiday season?

Not yet, you haven't.



The poor-quality video above is just a small sampling of what you can expect from the 30th Anniversary Dean and Company Christmas Special! Here's the "promo" and you can view the entire spectacular extravaganza here (just click on videos). Those of you following along at home may recall that excerpts from the Dean & Company Christmas Special of 2007 was posted here by Matt at my behest. More info here and here.

The dean family and their variously-named relations are essentially folks with too much money and time on their hands. Their show has lost some of its earnestness recently as attention from from folks like Rick and Bubba have made them realize that folks have been laughing at them over the years rather than with them. The Deans appear to have embraced this new role and ham it up with the best of them. I, for one, am glad that the Deans chose to spend their fortune and free time producing three decades of truly mesmerizing and completely awful local access programming.

Even though the Deans are now playing along, they still have an amazing capacity for unintentional dissonant brilliance. Just check out their unbelievably terrifying website complete with dead baby doll guide and a virtual shooting gallery where you take potshots at children and their families in a deeply unsettling Victorian carnival ground.

Enjoy.

'Twas The Night Before Christmas by Tay Zonday

Deconstructing The Phantom Menace

For all of us who need to kill an hour or so over the holidays instead of killing our relatives.

Full story and parts 2-7 here.

Merry Christmas from PoF and Wham!

Um, stand up for Jesus?

Btw, in case our reader thinks that the PoF cabal meets secretly to come up with posting themes, let me assure you that mine and James' pee-related posts are purely coincidental. Our secret meetings have much more important matters as their focus...

Via Justin.

It's all pipes

I'm probably playing with fire by posting an environmentalist promotion on a libertarian blog, but I have to give the Brazilians points for style and practicality. I was green before it was cool.

Want

Via Reason.

Accenture cancels revised Tiger ads

PoF News: Accenture announced it is breaking up with Tiger Woods, but it's a difficult break-up. In fact, the company even briefly toyed with launching a new ad campaign that would reflect the changed atmosphere around the beleaguered golfer. Thanks to the same folks who raided email accounts to bring us Climategate we have a sneak peek at this ill-conceived effort:



Thanks, Charles!

Then how about a smile?

In a culmination of my hopes and dreams, I've now become a POF Blogger. And so, I'm pleased to give all of you a Christmas present, straight from the heart.

Via AV Club

Customers love new laptop steering wheel desk

The AutoExec WM-01 Wheelmate Steering Wheel Desk Tray attaches to your steering wheel for easy access to a writing and drink storage surface.

Here's an excerpt from one satisfied customer's review: "I use it as a 'mini-bar' when the friends and I go out to the bars. I can quickly fix multiple shots of tequila for myself and the friends as we drive from one bar to the next. We also discovered that if you place a pillow on top of it and turn on the cruise control you can catch quick naps on the interstate."

Via Ze Frank.

Give it a ponder.

Ok, so I'm a sucker for viral ads.

Are you a traceur, too?

Via Kent.

Becoming Batman

Last year author E. Paul Zehr released Becoming Batman, a training manual for how an average joe could achieve the physical transformation necessary to be a superhero. Earlier this year, a trailer debuted on YouTube for a new feature film documenting just this process.

Thankfully, though, you don't have to wait on the movie to come to your local theater. You can watch all of the episodes leading up to this point here.

All politics is local

Independent endorsement of Birmingham mayoral candidate Patrick Cooper. Yeah, that's how we roll down south...

"The Palin man isn't a person. It's an idea; it's a philosophy..."

via Justinian.

Just in Time for Turkey Day

via the irrepressible Mike J.

Batmobile Smart Car

Somehow not as cool as the original.

Luke Skywalker on a Tauntaun

Read all about it here.

The Mightiest Beard of All

Words fail me.

Via Shaun

Awesome

Ramona Falls "I Say Fever" from Barsuk Records on Vimeo.

More

Via the talented Mr. Lowery

I'm sorry for posting this

And surprised it has not been seen round these parts before if our trusty search function is any indication:



Evidently this was a staple on Letterman for a while. It's practically a gift for late night comedy.

Yes, let the mighty eagle soar. John Ashcroft, we knew ye far too well.

Where the Dirty Hipsters Are

The real question is: where aren't they?

Drunk Ewoks make for good tv

Via Warming Glow: "The hosts of 'The Today Show' dressed up in Star Wars costumes for the typical 'here’s how you can decorate for Halloween' segment, and they hired a couple people to be in Ewok costumes, which was a nice touch. An even nicer touch? This email from a friend of mine: 'For what it’s worth, a friend who works at the Today Show confirms that they were both midgets and drunk.' *looks skyward* Thank you, God!

"It takes a while for this video to get going, but the payoff provides all sorts of unexpected delights. Ewoks fighting, moonwalking, leg-humping… If George Lucas had made the Ewoks like this in Return of the Jedi, it totally would have justified their existence."

Happy Halloween!

via HitandRun.

The Best of The Worst Tattoos in Mugshots

Via Chicago Now: "In this week's fun post, I give you the tattoos of people who apparently make a lot of bad decisions in life. They've all gotten arrested and they've all gotten some amazingly bad ink. Enjoy"

Thanks, Brian!

Swedish Chef Carves Pumpkins

"Painfully honest and epic"

I couldn't agree more:


Be sure to watch the making of as well. If i'm ever in the market for a mobile home, i'll be sure to visit Cullman Liquidators.

Full story.

Klenginem - SuvwI'pu' qan tu'lu'be

Eminem's "Without Me" in Klingon. Not much of a video, but you can't beat nerd-determination.

Reason Interviews Cuban Punk Rocker Gorki Aguila

Living with First-Person Shooter Disease

Via Kevin.

Trent Reznor shakes a mean tambourine

No other instrument better captures the essence of nihilism (except maybe maracas).

Mark Gormley sings

Via ze frank.

John Denver, USA

Improbable movie trading cards

Trading cards from Annie Hall, Silkwood, Schindler's List and more - see them all here and here.

Via Kent.

The 10 Worst Celebrity Courtroom Sketches

You can check out the rest of the gallery here.

Via ze frank.

Drinking is Just as Good as Yoga

More yoga poses here.

The Marshmallow Test

Oh, The Temptation from Steve V on Vimeo.

Snoop does Bollywood

Singh is King!

Via Justinian

RIP Norman Borlaug

Borlaug’s groundbreaking work began in 1944, when he was put in charge of a joint project between the Mexican government and the Rockefeller Foundation to try to boost grain production in Mexico.

Within two decades, he had developed a high-yielding, disease-resistant variety of wheat.

He then worked to put such cereal strains into mass production across South America, Africa, the Middle East and Asia, at the same time as pressing governments to introduce farmer-friendly economic policies.

Many experts believe that his efforts averted a widely predicted global famine in the second half of the 20th century and saved up to a billion lives.

Whisker Watch Alert!!

Via the always excellent and sometimes disturbing: Everything is Terrible!

2-3 year wait on SweeTango

The clear superiority of the Honeycrisp apple has been highlighted on PoF before (as has the unholy experiment known as the Grapple). Now, University of Minnesota apple breeders are preparing a successor to the Honeycrisp - the SweeTango. They claim it's an improvement. Unless you live in Minnesota, you're unlikely to find out for yourself until 2011-2012. Oh, how you tease us, science!

"SweeTango and Honeycrisp were developed at the University of Minnesota. The new apple has Honeycrisp's crispness and juice but kicks up the flavor and adds an intriguing note of fall spice. It was made by crossing Honeycrisp with Zestar!, another University of Minnesota variety.

"'It inherited Honeycrisp's texture, and that's a rare commodity, and it actually has more flavor than Honeycrisp,' said David Bedford, the university apple breeder who helped develop Honeycrisp and SweeTango."

New Eels video - E gets a date

Via Spinner: "'I've never been comfortable sharing my private life with the public, let alone letting a camera crew document it. But I'm willing to try anything once. I met Padma Lakshmi when we appeared on 'The Late Show with David Letterman' recently. I thought I had a shot with her. Then she met my dog, Bobby, Jr.'

"Bobby, Jr., who has a birth-defected backwards leg and a German Shepherd's full-size torso on little Basset Hound legs, made his first appearance on the 2005 Eels album 'Blinking Lights and Other Revelations,' singing the solo on 'Last Time We Spoke.' He has since gone on to have cameos in several Eels videos and has his own line of merchandise and MySpace page. His star has continued a rapid ascent that threatens to eclipse that of his master's.

"'I regret the whole thing now. I was so nervous, I was sweating. While it's a long-standing tradition for rock singers to date beautiful, famous women, it doesn't always go according to plan. I was in over my head. I always dreamt of dating someone as beautiful as Padma Lakshmi. I should probably just go back to dreaming.'"

Because it's been a long time

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Sesame Street Gangsta Rap:



Via: ER

Worst movie tattoos ever

"Tattoos of movies that aren't as cool as expected..."

Thanks, James!

FIREBIRDS light

Via Kent: "This started as an experiment to see what would happen if I cut down FIREBIRDS (Nicolas Cage's TOP GUN) by using only the shots of Nic Cage (cause he's so awesome) but it was a bit too surreal and actually too much Cage (if you can believe that). So I trimmed it down further and I cheated a little by adding a few extra shots to help the storytelling out. I invite you to fall into a Cage-coma. Viva la Bunkdance!"

The Ballad of G.I. Joe

The Ballad of G.I. Joe from Olivia Wilde

Better casting and far more entertaining than the actual movie (plus bonus Alan Tudyk!).

Hippie Weirdo Yoga Farmer

The Quick Brown Fox Kicks Ass

CNR

Smell your fruit

Not too long ago, Tyler Cowen at Marginal Revolution posted a blog entry on Richard Wrangham's How Cooking Made Us Human. Cowen highlighted the following memorable quote from the book:

"Instinctotherapists, a minority group among raw-foodists, believe that because we are closely related to apes we should model our eating behavior on theirs."

That's really just the tip of the instinctotherapy vignette, though. Here's a bit more:

"In 2003 I had lunch with Roman Devivo and Antje Spors, whose book Genefit Nutrition argues that cooked food provides an unhealthy diet to which we are not adapted. They were lean and healthy. They were clear about their preference, which was to eat all of their food not merely raw but without any preparation at all. They politely declined a salad because its ingredients had been chopped and mixed. The natural way, they explained, is to do what chimpanzees do. Just as those apes find only one kind of fruit when eating in a given tree, so we should eat only one kind of food in any meal.

"To illustrate their habit, Devivo, Spors, and a friend had brought a basket containing a selection of organic foods. They sniffed at several fruits, one at a time, to allow their bodies to decide what would suit them best."

The story goes on to mention how the friend scooped out bone marrow from a buffalo femur for lunch. The threesome are apparently experienced enough at this point to avoid following their own advice to blindfold themselves, a procedure recommended in Genefit Nutrition:

“It may be beneficial to close your eyes or use a blindfold when choosing. Have a friend hold each fruit for you to smell without looking at them. In doing so you will not be influence by your mind [sic]. The results are often surprising.”

Interested in more surprises? Check out the website.

Moment of clarity

AC/DC + Celine Dion = Thunderstruck

Thanks, Craig.

Buzz Aldrin... Nuff Said.

Happy Mooniversary!

Fancy Fast Food

Taking real fast food ingredients and turning them into actual food (or at least fancier looking food)!

Super President!

Cleveland viewers say bear recreation is too real for comfort

Via The Unusual Times.

United Breaks Guitars

Yet another reason to love the good folks in Canadia [sic], they complain peacefully and creatively:)

Dean Glenn Hubbard 's I'll Be Watching You

Ok, maybe there are some redeeming qualities to Columbia Business School.

"Being a big guy certainly has its advantages"

"And its disadvantages"

We PoFers like to think of ourselves as ardent supporters of freedom and trade, but i'm not sure i want to live in a world where anyone actually purchases a Comfort Wipe.

Words fail.

Via Kevin.

David Lynch's A Goofy Movie

Asian Poses

One of the primary goals of this site is to spread the knowledge of Asian poses so that people would start trying them out. When I start seeing people do these poses, it brings a feeling that can only be described as self-actualization.

I learn something new every day. Via Presurfer

Turbo Heather!

Busey Does Point Break Live

Actor Gary Busey made a special appearance at the Dragonfly on Friday night for the May 22 performance of Point Break Live!, the wildly popular punk-rock stage adaptation of the 1991 action flick Point Break that starred Busey as seasoned FBI agent and general badass, Angelo Pappas, opposite Keanu Reeves' Johnny Utah.

By far, the best and least-crazy thing Busey has done in years.... except for maybe this - which is a really great reason to buy a TomTom. But add in Mr. T, Kim Cattrall, and Dennis Hopper - and I may just end up circling the block for days.

Han Solo, P.I.

Three Wolf Moon!

It's not too early to start thinking about Christmas and I know 3 bloggers who could use a badass t-shirt or actually 3 badass shirts because otherwise we'd have to...nevermind.

Here is the video nestled in its original environment among nearly 100 pages of reviews at Amazon for the aforementioned shirt. Here are the guys behind it, the spot this phenomenon earned on ABC News and the proud manufacturers in Keene, New Hampshire.

Via bunbun

Best. Video. Ever

Via Justinian

Is Obama "The Mysterious Stranger"?

In his unfinished work, "The Mysterious Stranger," Mark Twain wrote of a figure named simply No. 44. According to the text, "everybody was anxious to know him and talk with him." Could he have been predicting the 44th president?

You be the judge.